Northeast Ohioans are clearing downed tree limbs and assessing the damage from severe storms that swept across the region late Tuesday afternoon. More than 300,000 homes in Northeast Ohio remained without power as of Wednesday afternoon, and FirstEnergy is advising customers that some may be without service "through the weekend."
"The damage across greater Cleveland/northeast Ohio is significant and widespread, consisting of hundreds of broken poles and crossarms, downed power lines and fallen trees and debris blocking road access," the company said in a statement.
"While we do not have exact estimated restoration times available for customers at this time, we expect this to be a multi-day restoration effort for many."
Power outages were predominantly reported in Cuyahoga, Lorain, Lake and Geauga counties. A FirstEnergy map of updating the extent of outages can be found here.
Wind monitors recorded a wind gust of 86 miles per hour just east of Burke Lakefront Airport, according to cleveland.com, and the National Weather Service is working to determine if a tornado touched down in the area.
Frank Williams, Cleveland’s director of Public Works, said city crews are working “around the clock” to clean up debris, help with traffic flow and assist with any safety issues following the storm.
Williams said as of 10 p.m. Tuesday night, there were about 150 calls for downed trees the city’s urban forestry commission were working to address.
He said the city’s waste division was impacted “very heavily” with damage at most locations.
As of Wednesday morning, Williams said all main roads were clear and crews were working to sweep residential roads.
Meanwhile, the division of traffic engineering had signal crews out throughout the evening on standby as they awaited power restoration to traffic lights. Some are still out due to power outages, but Williams said crews are working to help with traffic flow.
According to Councilmember Brian Kazy, who spoke with Cleveland Public Power on Wednesday, nearly half the city’s feeders, which transmit electricity, were tripped, leaving 34,348 customers without power. As of Wednesday, Cleveland Public Power had restored power for about half of those people.
Williams said the city is working to deal with immediate safety issues first, but it plans to help residents with any flooding or debris issues on Saturday.
Ideastream Public Media Morning Edition host Amy Eddings was at home in Fairview Park when the storm moved through on Tuesday.
"I received a weather alert on my phone around 3:50 p.m. with a tornado warning for Rocky River, the city just north of my city... Within minutes, the rain went from steady to heavy, the trees started lashing about, and I heard crashes and bangs outside. I felt a little uneasy watching sheets of insulation catapulting over the roof of the neighboring six-story apartment building.
Eddings said the damage to the Fairview Village complex where she lives looked extensive, with downed tree limbs, chunks of lumber, leaves and twigs everywhere, and shredded insulation.
In Lakewood, just north of Fairview Park, Cook Ave. remained closed Wednesday afternoon due to downed power lines. Two vehicles in the roadway were crushed by falling tree branches.
Further West in Rocky River, resident Jeff Halper was finishing cutting up large chunks of tree at the front of his property. He started cleanup immediately after the storm passed Tuesday with the assistance of four of his friends and their chainsaws and was back to work at 8 a.m. Wednesday.
“Thank God it missed the house,” said Halper. “I’ll take my time getting it done. It is what it is. Thank God nobody got hurt.”
Nearby, in Parma Heights, tall utility poles on W. 130th Street had snapped like match sticks, leaving power lines stretched across the roadway. In neighboring Parma, residents on W. Ridgewood Road had to steer clear of downed utility lines mere feet from their front doors and in their back yards. Most traffic lights were down in the area, though some were back in operation thanks to gas-fed generators.
The lack of power didn’t stop some from carrying on with business. At the Presige Barbershop on the Cleveland-Lakewood border, Adam Tayeh grabbed his barber chair and battery-powered razors and set-up shop on the sidewalk.
“We were hoping (the power) would be back on but figured when we got here we’d pull the chair outside, enjoy the weather and do some haircuts,” said Tayeh. “Make some people happy.”
