Lightning Strike Leaves 4,843 Without Power Across Kensington and Flatbush

By BoroPark24 Staff

A widespread power outage has left approximately 4,843 Con Edison customers without electricity across Flatbush, Kensington, and surrounding areas of Central Brooklyn on Friday morning, with Mayor Zohran Mamdani confirming that a lightning strike was responsible for the disruption.

The outage affected a large section of the neighborhood, stretching across portions of Flatbush, East Flatbush, and Kensington, leaving thousands of homes and businesses without electricity. Con Edison crews were dispatched to investigate the situation, assess the damage, and begin efforts to restore power to affected customers.

In an update issued Friday morning, Mayor Mamdani confirmed that approximately 4,500 Con Edison customers had lost electricity as a result of a lightning strike, adding that the utility company was actively working to restore service.

The mayor also said the city was taking additional measures to address the impact of the outage, including providing power generators to affected schools and managing traffic at intersections where traffic signals had stopped functioning.

The disruption has raised particular safety concerns for motorists and pedestrians, as several traffic lights throughout the affected neighborhoods were reported to be out of service.

NYC Emergency Management confirmed that it was coordinating with Con Edison and investigating the widespread power disruption, while urging residents to exercise extra caution when traveling through intersections with nonworking traffic signals.

Officials reminded drivers that traffic lights that are not functioning must be treated as stop signs. Motorists should come to a complete stop and yield before proceeding, unless otherwise directed by emergency personnel.

Pedestrians are advised to use designated crosswalks, look in all directions, and wait until vehicles have stopped before attempting to cross the street. Officials emphasized that pedestrians should never assume approaching drivers will stop.

Cyclists are also being urged to slow down, remain alert for vehicles approaching from all directions, and be prepared to stop and yield to pedestrians. Drivers and cyclists must stop for pedestrians in marked and unmarked crosswalks when traffic signals are not operating.

The city is encouraging residents to report malfunctioning traffic signals by calling 311, while anyone facing an immediate life-threatening emergency should contact 911.

Residents can also receive the latest emergency notifications and updates by texting NOTIFYNYC to 692-692.

As Con Edison crews continue working to restore electricity, no estimated restoration time has yet been announced for the affected neighborhoods.