My neighbors contracted with a private tree service to remove trees from their and my yard. The agent was a Martin Santiago who said he represented Affordible Tree Servicce. We were told that FEMA and Westfield were working together to get rid of debris so he left it in street. Now the mayor says this is not so. We have tried to contact Mr Santiago to no avail. This is a message to inform and warn other home owners. Shaun Cherewich 222Delawarw Street

What can be done about leaves / branches in areas with no power that may potentially cause blockage to sewers. As per forecast substantial rain coming on Wednesday and no power means no sump pump which can lead to flooded basements. Can the town be proactve and assist and alleviate this worry by clearing areas with NO POWER FIRST?

I think Mayor Skibitsky is doing a fine job of keeping us up to date on developments through Patch, the town-wide conference call, etc. The information above is timely and well laid out. It's not necessarily what everyone wants to hear but the facts are what they are. He is clearly working hard in the aftermath of the storm.

If this new storm knocks out power to the areas that just got it - are the ones without power now back to the bottom of the list again?!

I am thankful for Mayor Skibitsky's frequent and detailed updates, even if the news isn't necessarily what we want to hear. My parents live in Chatham and they get NO information like we have gotten in Westfield. My power just came back on tonight, so I haven't been enjoying warm nights or power, either, but am thankful for friendly and generous neighbors, invitations to do laundry at people's homes, and for power trucks who have come from all over the country to help me.

You guys are crazy! A total lack of leadership and communication from this mayor. This is New Jersey people not a third world country! We should expect to have power and heat back after a week. I listened to his conference call where he kissed PSE&G's backside and said "this weekend" and about all the workers flooding in to help. Where are they? I don't see them. How about that great "tweet" that Westfield would be "fully energized" by tonight only to be retracted hours later. It is very obvious that our mayor is in way over his head as other towns are "energized" far quicker than ours. But keep smiling because he feels our pain, his power is out too. Really! Be a leader and solve the problem!

Resign Skibitsky!

All substations have been up for days; what's the hold up? We now need specifics. What's exactly happening, what streets/neighborhoods are being worked on? PSE&G has been non-existent. If not for Amerigen of Missouri, we'd have very little coverage at all. Tomorrow is a new day, if schools continue to be closed and if there isn't more of a larger utility presence - the Mayor should resign.

Hey Andy, if my house was "energized" and I no longer need my generator. I wouldn't think twice about offering it to you. SCUMBAG!

Central Ave still has a detour by Clark; Boynton between Pearl & Hardwick has a line down due to a tree branch that hasn't been touched. This is absurd! Either get PSE&G to restore power and get crews in here fast or the mayor should resign and let someone else take over. This is not effective advocacy. Power has been out for more than a week and I am going to get hit by another storm without power? Thanks Mr. Mayor--you are doing great.

Prior to complaining about a little darkness and chill, look at these photos:

http://darkroom.baltimoresun.com/2012/11/aerial-images-of-sandys-destruction/#PhotoSwipe1352030118735

Is there a public official or a PSE&G official I can bribe to get my power back on? If there is let me know I would be willing too. I have lived in third world countries and I understand how thinks work. I would be willing to make a "contribution" to someone's campaign fund if they can get my power on today.

MR. LA ROSSA, PARDONING ME FOR SAYING SO BUT YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN WORKING ON THE "PROCESS" LONG BEFORE THE HURRICANE HIT. THERE ARE DISASTER RECOVERY PROCESSES FOR DATA RECOVERY IN COMPANIES SUCH AS YOURS, WHY ISN'T THERE PROCESSES IN PLACE FOR DISASTERS CAUSED BY THE WEATHER? I AM SURE YOU ARE FAMILIAR WITH "WHAT IF" ANALYSIS. I THINK THE GOVERNOR'S OFFICE WAS RIGHT ON IN ASKING YOU FOR LONGER RANGE ESTIMATES OF WORK EFFORT. IF HE DIDN'T, WE MAY HAVE BEEN TWO WEEKS WITHOUT ELECTRICITY. I THANK THE EFFORTS OF ALL YOUR PEOPLE IN GETTING OUT THERE TO BRING THE CUSTOMERS BACK ON-LINE. IT IS MY HOPE IN THE FUTURE THAT THERE WILL BE PROCESSES DEVELOPED BY THE LEADERSHIP TO DEAL WITH SUCH A SITUATION IN A MORE RESPONSIVE AND METHODICAL WAY. ALSO, YOUR ON-LINE SYSTEM IS OF NO HELP IN INFORMING THE CUSTOMER OF THE STATUS OF REPAIRS IN THEIR AREA.

I can not believe the comments on this article. The mayor is doing the best he can with what he has. I completely understand the frustration but throwing nasty and mean comments is not helping. Be thankful that all you have is no power. There are people who lost their homes and/or family members. Regarding the negative comments about people living on/near the beach shame on you!! I grew up on the jersey shore and it breaks my heart that my hometown area is no more! How dare you criticise people for living there!

Enouf said

Next time PSEG should give an estimate of weeks instead of days. When someone hears '2 days' or 'by the weekend' they take it as gospel and then get mad when the time frame is missed. With destruction of this magnitude, it is difficult to predict exactly when something will be finished. Next time have a generator at the ready, just in case. I'd rather see it sitting idle in the corner unused, than be without the next.

What whiny entitled brats we are! Can we try and remember that even though we climb into the icy sheets of our beds each night, that we still have our beds and our homes? We are not injured merely inconvenienced. People from all over the country have come to our aid...at great personal risk and inconvenience. And what are we missing anyway? The latest episode of some TV reality show? As my wise Hungarian grandfather would say,"Be still, man, and rest your horses." You have time to savor the silence and the unexpected treasure of a neighbor's kindness. Play with your kids. Reach out and help someone. Vote. Seize this respite, forced or not. Frantic noisy electronic reality will be back soon enough.

It used to drive me nuts that my parents would never complain when the power would go out and be out for days after a storm. After skimming through article after article and seeing thousands of comments from folks who lost nothing more than power in this *monster* storm about how they didn't have power, I'm so glad my parents never complained. But then I guess you can tell my parents were raised by parents who lived through the Great Depression, and know what it means to have nothing and to appreciate what they have. *sigh* But then I'm used to the "grown-ups" of New Jersey pushing and shoving me to get a seat on a NJ Transit train or on a PATH train, so why would I expect better behavior now?

Alot of the negativity is generated by laziness. Instead of blaming everyone else for your dereliction in purchasing a generator start moving your idle hands & spend that energy helping your fellow neighbors or moving your family to a warm place. Strategize your future generator purchase. Shut up, man up & get it done.

FACT from Westfield Twitter and PSE&G web site-----82% of PSE&G customers restored. To me that says 82% of the states mayors did a better job advocating. If 82% of kids did better than mine on their SAT's I would be upset, disappointed and embarrassed. I would not say "well that was a really hard test" which is essentially what a lot of you are saying. Also now that 82% of PSE&G customers are restored where are all of those additional workers? I am not saying the mayor is a bad person, I don't know him but I will say he lacks leadership and the understanding of how to get things done in this world. I will say again Mr Mayor solve the problem and get the whole town power!!!!!!

With respect to the 82% restored, take a look at the towns with percentage of meters out > 18%.

Allowing that the utility isn't lying to the Governor, the towns over 20% are in the Union County area (Westfield, Roselle, Cranford, Summit) or have lots and lots of trees (Ridgewood, Maplewood, etc.)

The tree/wire issue is evident and Coordination is key.

We'd all like to get back on line. Mind your manners so you can be proud of yourself down the road. If you think you can do a better job drop your alias and stand up.

Even with the loss of power and all that goes along with it. I am truly grateful and consider myself blessed that I was able to tuck my 2 babies into their own beds and kiss them goodnight through it all. My heart bleeds for our friends, extended family and fellow New Jerseyans that are denied that simple pleasure. It has been a very hard time for us all. I want to thank all the workers who have come from near and far. They are working hard for us under extreme conditions. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for leaving your family and your warm beds to help us regain ours!

No one complaining is whiney or believes they are "entitled." We get power because we PAY for it--that is not an entitlement. Since we pay our bills we want service and electricity, it is that simple. To those of you who say don't complain because others have it worse, that is not a real argument. Do you tell someone who has lost a leg to stop complaining because someone else is quadriplegic? Do you tell the paralyzed person to stop complaining because someone else has died? I do not wish ill on anyone, so don't tell me to be quiet because someone is worse off. Asking for our power back quickly from a huge utility is not unreasonable. Asking our mayor to be a good leader and advocate is not unreasonable. What is happening in Westfield after this storm is totally unreasonable. The ocean did not rise up and flood our town. An antiquated infrastructure with an unprepared and uncaring utility are to blame.

I have an updated and state-of-the-art infrastructure in my area - it's called a generator.

Home Owner -- that is just plain silly. Are you saying that when PSE&G is your provider, you better get a generator? Is that something PSE&G told you to do or did you figure that out yourself. By the way, does your generator give you heat, air conditioning and electricity for all your lights and appliances, or do you pick and choose? You must work for Westfield DPW or PSE&G to come up with such a clever comment.

That's great Home Owner. So you agree the infrastructure is antiquated. We should all have underground lines. The generator you describe is not $500-$700; that kind of money gets you 1 furnace and 1 refrigerator and maybe a light or 2. If PSE&G did its job, you wouldn't need it. I have no problem needing a generator for 2-3 days. But over a week with another storm on the way???

Home Owner
@Bill Maher: says "So our utilities get another pass on preparedness" Why not just go out and buy yourself a generator so that YOU will be prepared the next time and will stop complaining.
Just so happens we have a professionally installed generator system with the capability to power any circut in the house. Rather presumptive of you to think otherwise.

The more I think about this the more I conclude maybe power/utility supply does not belong in the private sector. They don't seem to be doing a very good job of it even with the help of FEMA, Military, Police and Fire supporting their efforts at taxpayer expense....
BTW what's with the alias???? "HOMEOWNER" not confident enough to stand behind your opinions and let folks know who you are???!!!

Home Owner says in part....."Patch is too open an environment not to be using an alias."

Nonsense. You just don't have any confidence in your opinions... and of course,
what other people may think of them....

Hey Home Owner--do you know what PSE&G's profits were last year? $1,407 million!!! You are going to lecture me on what it costs to put underground cables in??? Don't worry, the cost is passed on to the consumer.

My brother, sister-in-law and nephew's house was destroyed by Superstorm Sandy. They did not, to quote a writer "choose to own homes on barrier islands or any high risk coastal area..." Their house is in Westfield, It was crushed by a properly maintained oak tree, certified so by the tree surgeon. Why not go help some of the people whose homes were lost by the storm surge at Trembley Point, where the Arthur Kill meets the Rahway River? The mean-spirited tone of some of the writers here is disheartening. What kind of example is that to our children? Supposing the out-of state volunteers had decided to stay home and watch television because it was too inconvenient to travel not knowing where or if they would sleep. Endeavor to live responsibly by getting involved in helping people in Sayreville, Rahway, Belmar, Linden, Sewaren, Staten Island. Deliver Meals on Wheels. Be a literacy volunteer. Smile at someone. Practice a random act of kindness. You might discover that you feel better about your lot in life, if only for a minute.
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