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BRONX, NY August 02, 2006 —Parts of the Bronx have been without power or only limited power since last night, as Con Ed crews continue working to restore their service. WNYC’s Beth Fertig visited the Fordham section to see how people were coping and filed this report.

REPORTER: Residents of the Fordham neighborhood probably didn’t think it could get any hotter as the morning sun baked down on their streets. But then, at around 11 a.m., a four story building on 193rd Street and Bainbridge Avenue burst into flames.

It was a vacant building and thankfully nobody was found inside. But it took dozens of firefighters to put out the blaze. Kevin Adams was working the pump for Engine company 48 and he was concerned about his fellow firefighters in the withering heat.

ADAMS: The guys will be wiped out in a matter of 10 minutes, 15 minutes to they try to rotate them out.The manpower needs to get switched out quick. It’s like walking around with a sleeping bag wearing that stuff. All that stuff he has on is about 100 pounds. So it’s no fun. You earn your money today!

REPORTER: Firefighter John Sullivan of Ladder Company 33 emerged from the fire dripping in sweat, with a compress over his red face.

SULLIVAN: It’s real hot, real hot. Doesn’t take long to get overwhelmed.

REPORTER: Fourteen firefighters suffered minor injuries. Nearby, a firefighter with a Rest And Care truck stood ready to help.

SAL: I have ice cold Gatorade, ice cold water, wet rags… a fan blows water on them. It puts a dent in it but not enough.

REPORTER: He was also fixing a leaking hydrant. Firefighters have been getting calls all day about open hydrants. A resident named Norma – who didn’t want to give her full name – said she had seen another one leaking in the neighborhood. She was also worried that she would lose her electricity if people didn’t cooperate and reduce demand.

NORMA: If they keep putting those air conditioners and washing machine forget it!

REPORTER: Many people in the neighborhood were already without power, or had only enough to turn on a couple of lights. Outages started yesterday evening. 18 year old Sigourney Craig and her boyfriend Jonathan Williams joined the hundreds of people who stood outside watching the fire partly because there wasn’t anything else to do while waiting for their electricity to come back.

WILIAMS: I don’t know it’s the only excitement I get to see today.

GIRL: TV’s and everything else is off so AC, is standing out side and watch the fire.

REPORTER: The power outages were seemingly random. A few buildings had no electricity at all; others, like the diner down the street, had enough juice to run a few appliances.

KATASES: My name is George Katases. I work at Splendid Deli restaurant and we have no power at all since last night, just power now for the lights that’s it. We got the power just this morning at just for the lights, not the units, no air conditioner or nothing.

REPORTER: Can you serve any food?

KATASES: Food yes. Because I have gas you know, things, not cold stuff only hot stuff.

REPORTER: Across the street, and up the block, Con Ed crews were working to restore service. The utility workers said a cable had gone down because of a faulty switch. They were snaking it out of the street with a big truck. Across the street, Guadalupe Castanara and her three children stood outside their apartment building, hungry and tired.

CASTANARA: Mucho calor, no dormer.

REPORTER: She said they didn’t get any sleep at all last night after the power went out, and she wasn’t able to cook. Their neighbor, Victoriano Moreno, sat on a chair eating a sandwich he’d bought at a local bodega which had air conditioning. He was watching his 11 year old grandson, Xavier Amparo. Xavier said he would have liked to go to a pool or a city cooling center, or at least his own house which did have air conditioning. But his grandfather wanted to stay.

AMPARO: I don’t know he just wants to hang out here and I’m just like alright. It’s pretty boring.

REPORTER: His grandfather said he might reconsider. But for now, Moreno seemed content to stay on the street, watching the action.

MORENO: My grandson later maybe I go later go in the house. Maybe later I go.

REPORTER: Later, he said, like when it gets really hot.

For WNYC I’m Beth Fertig.