There are over 32,000 FirstEnergy customers without power in Ohio, as of 9:30 a.m. Monday, according to the company’s outage website.
The following counties and number of people have been affected:
- Ashtabula County - 2,622 affected
- Cuyahoga County - 3,179 affected
- Geauga County - 2,593 affected
- Lake County - 1,111 affected
- Portage County - 2,260 affected
- Stark County - 3,147 affected
- Summit County - 1,757 affected
- Wayne County - 2,024 affected
- Trumbull County - 6,919 affected
FirstEnergy released a statement regarding the time of restoration for its customers, stating that some affected customers will not have power until Tuesday or Wednesday.
For those who fall under the Illuminating Company jurisdiction, about 78,500 customers lost power. Power is expected to be restored to the majority of customers by Tuesday at 4 p.m.
For those who fall under the Ohio Edison jurisdiction, 152,000 customers lost power. Power is expected to be restored to the majority of customers by Wednesday at 4 p.m.
Illuminating Company customers were also sent an email on Sunday afternoon regarding the time of restoration.
Crews are working hard to assess damage and restore power to customers after heavy rain and high winds with gusts exceeding 60 mph swept through our service area yesterday.
We expect to restore service to the majority of customers by 4 p.m. on Tuesday, March 28. Though downed trees, localized flooding and road closures can slow progress, crews will continue to work around the clock to get customers back up and running.
We know that any outage is inconvenient. We are committed to restoring power as quickly and safely as possible and we thank you for your patience and understanding!
The Illuminating Company also sent safety tips on how to navigate a power outage:
- Assume any downed line is alive and energized
- Do not use any open-flame heat sources to stay warm, as it can cause a build up of carbon monoxide inside your home
- When operating a generator, the power coming into the home should always be disconnected
RELATED: PHOTOS: Damage left behind after severe weather moved through Northeast Ohio
Cleveland Public Power issued a statement on Twitter about the restoration of power for customers:
POWER OUTAGE UPDATE: We have restored power to the majority of our customers. If you do not have power please call 216-664-3156 to report your address. Crews are still working on wires down.
— ClevelandPublicPower (@clepublicpower) March 26, 2023
RELATED: Power Outages
Cuyahoga County
News 5 caught up with Michael and Kristen LoPresti of Shaker Heights. After hours without power, the family left to go to a friend's house, but on their way back home they realized large trees that had fallen in their neighborhood, taking power lines with it, signified a long night ahead.
"We are headed back home to see if we can brave it out overnight," said Kristen. "But we might have to head back out to family, we don't want the kids cold all through the night."
In Westlake, Center Ridge Road was closed between Columbia Road and King James road due to multiple poles breaking and arching, according to the Westlake Police Department. It has since reopened, however power to many areas have not been restored.
Antonio's Pizza and Thai Spice are located in a plaza on Center Ridge Road. Around 3:00 p.m., power lines fell on Thai Spice and into the parking lot, knocking out power until possibly Monday, which is a big loss of revenue, said business employees.
"I was in the back working on prep items and the power went out. I came up here to make sure everything was okay and saw out the front window that there were sparks flying out of the poles. I immediately called 911. They told us to evacuate everyone in the buildings," said Danene Robidoux, the assistant general manager at Antonio’s Pizza. "It's usually crazy busy. I'm getting calls all night on my phone just trying to redirect traffic to other Antonio's."
See continuing coverage of the severe weather and its impacts in Northeast Ohio here.
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