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New Jersey Governor Christie Calls For Hearings On Utility Companies After Hurricane Irene

TRENTON, N.J. (AP) -- Gov. Chris Christie says the state Board of Public Utilities will hold hearings on the performance of New Jersey electric companies after Hurricane Irene.

He says he's especially concerned about Jersey Central Power & Light. Christie said Friday that the company has restored service more slowly than others in the state.

JCP&L spokesman Ron Morano said the company remains focused on restoring service, but would cooperate with any review of its performance at the appropriate time.

By 6 p.m. Friday, there were fewer than 27,000 homes and businesses still without power, nearly all of them in JCP&L's territory.

The company said most of the remaining customers should be restored by Saturday, with small groups of customers in severely flooded areas being restored by late Sunday.

(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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