12 days after Irene, home gets full power

Danny Arcieri doesn't like being last.

Twelve days after Tropical Storm Irene knocked out power to more than 500,000 Long Islanders, Arcieri on Friday was visited by crews who completely restored power to his Blue Point home -- four days after the Long Island Power Authority said all its customers had power restored.

"They said 100 percent were back, and it was a lie," Arcieri said.

The power restoration, which followed inquiries by Newsday on Friday, took place around 4 p.m., Arcieri said.

LIPA spokeswoman Vanessa Baird-Streeter said Arcieri's was the last call from a customer who had been out of power since the storm. "We haven't gotten any other calls like this," she said.

Downed wires in his yard were exposed since Irene struck Aug. 28. He called cable crews who advised him that the downed line was live and that he shouldn't touch it.

Arcieri estimated he called LIPA six times over 12 days, hoping for crews to show up.

LIPA spokesman Mark Gross said Arcieri received "multiple calls notifying him that the issue was resolved and he should have full power and if there is still a problem to notify us."

Baird-Streeter said LIPA crews were there Thursday, but it was unclear why power wasn't fully restored then.

Arcieri said he had partial power in the house, but it wasn't available to any essential appliances.

"It was not just inconvenient -- there's wires on the ground," he said.

Before power was restored, Arcieri said frustration levels were high. "LIPA has very clear information on who and where we are," he said. "The pizza guy gets to us."