Infrastructure Week? The Westbard area of Bethesda needs Infrastructure Month. Residents were reminded of that yet again last night, during the latest complete power failure. Meteorologists raved all day on TV and radio about just how perfect the weather was Tuesday. But at 7:29 PM, residents in the Springfield neighborhood report, there was a total power outage. Homes were dark for a total of three minutes before power was restored at 7:32 PM, potentially damaging household appliances and devices that were plugged in to charge or operate at that time.
The blackout follows two weeks of lengthy Xfinity service outages in the same area of Bethesda. Neither Pepco nor Comcast has publicly announced the cause of the service interruptions. The Westbard area has experienced power outages and brownouts since 2018, when redevelopment of the area got underway. Whether the Pepco and Comcast grids are failing due to age, construction on Westbard Avenue, or the increased demand to power the new development at Westbard is unclear as long as Montgomery County and the utilities maintain silence on the issue.
Montgomery County elected officials, who approved the growth in the 2016 Westbard sector plan, have been sound asleep at the switch throughout the outages. They've continuously failed to step up to the plate to represent their constituents, while collecting ever-rising six-figure salaries on the County Council.
On Friday, April 26th Kenwood Place Condominium residents were informed that a subcontractor for Regency inadvertently cut the cables to all internet and hard-wired phone services at the construction site at Westbard. Most service was restored in a day, but there may be residual outages.
ReplyDeleteWhy doesn't the County Council fix xfinity??? Why doesn't the County Council open a Texas Roadhouse and an Oliver Garden???? Does the County Council not even know what their job is??? Sheesh!
ReplyDeleteThere is so much we cannot even talk about, much less address issues to hopefully fix. It's unfortunate when people like 9:40 lambaste the message with sarcasm. Thanks Robert for all you do.
DeleteWe can make Bethesda a better place when we can't talk about the issues. We need forums like this, outside of our 'government.'
The Xfinity issues certainly aren't specific just to westbard
ReplyDeleteJust call the Electrification Team:
ReplyDeletehttps://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/DEP/Resources/Images/energy/homes/electrifymc-team.png
9:25: Thank you - very helpful piece of information. The sort of thing the Council and Regency should be sharing with all impacted customers.
ReplyDelete10:17: You are correct. A reader in Friendship Heights mentioned that area was also affected during at least one of the outages.
This is Edward R. Murrow Award winning material right here
ReplyDeleteAs a lifelong Bethesda resident (BBoomer) I do a lot of wondering also.
ReplyDeleteThanks Robert, the dogs may bark but your parade will continue!
DeleteFirst things first... They all need to get the hell offa' Zoom© and get back to "working" in the office!
ReplyDeleteWill these brownouts affect my elevator in my brand new Westbard Brownstone?
ReplyDelete9:16: I guess it depends if EYA offers backup generators as an option. Appliances are stated to be all-electric, so I'm not sure if a natural gas generator can be accommodated. Maybe a solar or backup battery generator. Of course, a generator will not prevent appliances or elevators from being damaged by brownouts, which often involve rapid cut-off and restoration of current.
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