Millions Still Have No Power Following Weekend Weather–And It Could Last for Days
- Posted on July 1, 2012 at 12:10pm by
Erica Ritz
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Tek Measho, (C) and others rest on cots in a Red Cross shelter set up at Northwestern High School in Hyattsville, MD after heavy storms in the Washington, DC region knocked out power, June 30, 2012 (Photo: Getty Images)
(The Blaze/AP) — Utility crews untangled downed power lines and tree limbs Sunday, working to get the electricity turned back on for millions of people facing a second day of 100-degree temperatures without modern conveniences like air conditioning and refrigeration.
On Saturday, many people flocked to places like malls and movie theaters in the hope the lights would be on again when they returned home. Utilities were slowly making progress, but more than 3 million people still had no electricity and could only watch their thermostats climb. It could be several days before all the power outages are restored.
Strong winds from the storms late Friday toppled massive trees onto cars and blocked roads, and officials asked residents not to drive until they could clear debris from the streets. When a hurricane is lumbering their way, state officials have time to get extra personnel in place so they can immediately start on cleanup. That wasn’t the case with this storm, known as a derecho – a straight-line wind storm that sweeps over a large area at high speed.
“Unlike a polite hurricane that gives you three days of warning, this storm gave us all the impact of a hurricane without any of the warning of a hurricane,” Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley said.
An overnight storm in the area knocked down several trees on the course where Jimmy Walker plays in the AT&T National at Congressional Country Club (Photo: Getty Images)
With the power out, authorities also warned people to be careful when using generators and candles to help light darkened homes.
The bulk of the storm damage was in West Virginia, Washington and the capital’s Virginia and Maryland suburbs. At least six of the dead were killed in Virginia, including a 90-year-old woman asleep in her bed when a tree slammed into her home. Two young cousins in New Jersey were killed when a tree fell on their tent while camping. Two were killed in Maryland, one in Ohio, one in Kentucky and one in Washington.
In Washington’s northern Virginia suburbs, emergency 911 call centers were out of service; residents were told to call local police and fire departments. Huge trees toppled across streets in the nation’s capital, crumpling cars. Cellphone and Internet service was spotty, gas stations shut down and residents were urged to conserve water.
The power outages were especially dangerous because they left the region without air conditioning in an oppressive heat wave. Temperatures soared to highs in the mid-90s Saturday in Baltimore and Washington, a day after readings of up to 104 degrees were reported in the region.
An owner left a note on his truck after it was damaged by a downed tree during a powerful overnight storm in the Washington, DC region June 30, 2012 in Falls Church, Virginia (Photo: Getty Images)
Yet another day of temperatures reaching 100 degrees was forecast for much of the region Sunday.
Three Baltimore City fire companies set to permanently close this week were staying open several more days to help cope.
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie ordered the National Guard to deliver fuel for generators and fresh water to stricken areas. He reported that power had been restored to such tourist areas as Atlantic City’s casinos.
In West Virginia, 232 Amtrak passengers were stranded Friday night on a train blocked on both sides of the tracks by toppled trees.
Brooke Richart, a 26-year-old teacher from New York City, was among the passengers stranded for 20 hours. She read half a book and took walks outside the train, which had light, air conditioning and food the entire time. But she called the wait “trying.”
“Thankfully we could go in and out of the train because we were there so long. If you wanted to stretch your legs or take a walk, you could,” she said.
Amtrak spokesman Steve Kulm said passengers were taken away by buses Saturday night.
Marilyn Golias inspects her "100+ year-old" tree which was toppled by a severe storm and has rendered a street un-passable in Falls Church, Va. (Photo: AP)
Meanwhile, officials focused on the most vulnerable residents: children, the sick and the elderly.
In Charleston, W.Va., firefighters helped several people using walkers and wheelchairs get to emergency shelters. One of them, David Gunnoe, uses a wheelchair and had to spend the night in the community room of his apartment complex because the power – and his elevator – went out. Rescuers went up five floors to retrieve his medication.
Some sought refuge in shopping malls, movie theaters and other places where the air conditioning would be cranked up. Others simply tried to make the best of a bad situation.
In the Columbus, Ohio, suburb of Dublin, Lori Schaffert said her household borrowed a generator from a friend and was alternating it between the refrigerator and freezer while using flashlights and battery-operated lanterns for light. Her 5-year-old daughter and a neighbor friend played board games and helped her make pickles from their garden’s cucumbers.
“You come to appreciate the simple life a little more in these times,” Schaffert said.
Some major online services also saw delays and disruptions.
Netflix, Instagram and Pinterest resorted to using Twitter and Facebook to update subscribers after violent storms across the eastern U.S. caused server outages for hours. Netflix and Pinterest restored service by Saturday afternoon.
Instagram used its Facebook fan page to communicate with users of its photo-sharing service. It posted a message on Saturday morning that blamed the electrical storm for the outage that sent its engineers scrambling to restore service.
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Associated Press writers Vicki Smith in Morgantown, W.Va.; Larry O’Dell in Richmond, Va.; Pam Ramsey in Charleston, W.Va.; Jonathan Drew in Atlanta; and Dan Sewell in Cincinnati contributed to this report.
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Comments (51)
Fitzzz
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 11:36pmI’M finding it really odd, that there is no mention of looting, murder, rape, crime of any kind
Report Post »I would like to think that it’s not happening, but I know better
Why no reports yet ????????????
historyguy48
Posted on July 2, 2012 at 6:20amFolks summer had been around a lot longer than air conditioning, trust me! Summers in Arkansas were alway warm, 90-105 when I was young and air conditioning was still something only stores had, and not all of them.
Report Post »But wait, Obama is closing down those evil coal fired electricity generating plants, 32 in Ohio alone by the end of this year. Ohios little communist also ran for president, Kucinich, is also trying to close down our nuclear plant. When your freezing your butt off this winter because you need electricity to make your funace work you’ll be praying for some good old “global warming”.
None of what the fools are doing to us will end well!
goldmankc
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 11:10pmwashington dc to be without power for days?finally the liberal progressive juggernaut is shutdown yaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyyyyy.
Report Post »obama take a hint someone isnt happy with you.
eagle
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 10:33pmWHY do people run out to buy coolers? Your fridge IS a HUGE cooler—put the ice in IT.
Report Post »It is better made than most coolers you can buy. And don’t open it every 5 minutes.
lessoneleg
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 9:27pmall hands together now, WHERE’S WIND GREEN ENERGY when you absolutely need it. Collectively now people. Nowhere to find them. Vacant from the grid when you need it most. And right in the middle of spring when you absolutely don’t want Green Energy, they jump in flooding the system grid with mind numbing stupid production absolutely when you don’t want Green energy production.
Along comes a summer heat wave and you need all the power you can muster affordably, nope. Can’t deliver it to the people on time or dependably.
Thank you all you eco-liberal retards pushing a Green Energy Plan that can’t meet the challenge when the challenge is present. Oh, you‘re good at billing the public when the public doesn’t need your services. But when the needs are necessay, you step out of the batters box and faint injury and walk back to the players box.
Isn’t this so, liberal Democrat. Stuff it to the consumer, and blame the consumer when the conditions of need actually exist.
Close down your fossil fueled affordable, dependable power generation sources and install what?
Green Energy that won’t produce when the needs are the most. Thank you local liberal Democrats.
Report Post »Taquoshi
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 10:11pmOur City just had a tabletop emergency management exercise about something like this two weeks ago. People think preppers are crazy, but when this kind of thing happens, the preppers can take some of the burden off the emergency management team simply by not needing assistance, food or water.
Report Post »michael48
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 8:35pmwind mills and solar panels …yep they would of picked up the slack…if you ever find them ..perhaps in Bin Ladens new dig????
Report Post »Gypsy123
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 7:34pmObama Care passes and storms break loose. I know who controls the weather do you?
Report Post »Gypsy123
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 7:33pmHarbinger and its gonna get worse.
Report Post »407west
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 3:23pmThe 2,000 th SOLDIER died and the news fails to mention it. As the masses are in freak out mode, has anyone given any thought to the TROOPS going thru H*ll daily, for all those who poked fun at Glenn for saying prepare, who runs to the shelter first! God’s sending a wake up call—–
Heres a hint from hurricane Fla, fill the Ocean Spray bottles with water in your freezer as soon as the power goes out you load up the cooler, frozen bottles lasted a couple of days…..3 days no power and milk never went sour. Fill propane tank and write the date you filled on it…you can bring in your solar walk-way lights and use them for night lights, just needs a little work to put them out the next day to recharge, saver than candles..
Report Post »noproblems
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 3:21pmsomehow find it hard to feel sorry for a town that makes its living off of our tax dollars
Report Post »KenInIL
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 6:07pmThis is where all the reporters live. They need cooling centers– why not just open the windows — that’s what they were used for in the 50s.
People are still being burnt out their homes in the west. Soldiers still dying in Afghanistan Unemployment is still going up. Occupiers still are damaging private property.
— and all they can talk about is a little windstorm in DC
Report Post »christos
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 3:05pmProphetic the tree lands on the FORD.
Report Post »abbygirl1994
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 2:44pmGod is watching us, God is watching us, from a distance. As a nation we must humble ourselves and turn to God.. if we want to save America!
Report Post »Detroit paperboy
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 2:42pmThey will blame Bush………
Report Post »SilentReader
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 2:24pmNot good news. I wonder if God is sending us some kind of warning? And will we heed it?
America it’s not too late to change course. Start with voting them all out. We must restore America’s greatness again by turning back to God. We must remember George Washington’s Covenant with God at that Church near Ground Zero that was spared by that Sycamore tree being impaled by steel from the Twin Towers. The first harbinger. It was the only building near Ground Zero that didn‘t have it’s windows blown out. Coincidence? I think not.
The world’s politicians and the MSM have long ago become corrupt and the world is on fire, and the leader of the free world is MIA, and begging for money from Air Force One.
God help us!
Report Post »rebelwuf
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 2:13pmAnyone who has lost food from lack of refrigerators/freezers, be sure to check your homeowners/renters insurance. Many of them allow claims for lost food due to power failures.
Report Post »taxpro4u03
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 9:55pm‘cept for that ’act of god’ disclaimer part — ;-) — Insurance companies, banks and the Stock Market thrive on the ‘risk factor.’ Submit a claim – watch how fast the ‘adjusters’ swoop in to find a disqualifier. — Wonder if Native Americans thought of the ‘food insurance,’ Homeowners, etc parts when they PREPARED for such ‘events..’ well — til the last of ‘em were FORCED onto the ’entitlement program.’ — What do you think is happening now? p.s. — an ad to promote food stamps/ earned income credit? — yup – for the past nearly half century, the ‘public policy’ is designed to do just that… Now they‘re coming after what’s left of the job creators with add’l regulations, and a new and wonderful healthcare TAX :-0 –
Report Post »wakewiseone
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 1:55pmno doubt congress will investigate this power outage to hell and back once they return to DC. if they return……………and that assumes the power and AC are back on.
but this calamity reminds me of new orleans and the former mayor nagin…………..people screaming______save us, hep us, we re dying.
the storm and power outage…….just another living example of people needing to take responsibility for themselves.
Report Post »Angel_light
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 1:33pmI hope these people can get back up on their feet asap. I wish eveyone who was affecteed by this storm the best.
Unforseen trageties like these are why people should always be prepared for the worst case senario
Report Post »vtxphantom
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 1:32pmLooks as though God has spoken about the recent supreme court decision. He just sending us a gentle wake up call. As for the power outages, this is what you can expect on a daily basis under obama’s energy strategy.
Report Post »poorrichard09
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 2:18pm@vtxphantom: you’re so right!
Report Post »Also, I’ll bet all the folks who have made “preparations” are glad they did.
ScienceIsNotEvil
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 2:50pmYour deity sure has bad aim.
Report Post »TRVTH
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 1:31pmThis is what we are all in for as Obama’s EPA forces the closing of more and more coal plants, it is already expected that a typical electric bill will be in the several hundred dollar range up 4 or 5 times of what they are today.
Report Post »tonydanibradbury
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 1:21pmI live in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. The only places open yesterday were Wal-Mart, Sheetz and one or two small stores that were able to get generators. Thankfully, last night our electric was turned on around 2 a.m. There are still so many around here without power, and the temps are already in the mid-90s. This storm literally hit us out of nowhere. As of 7:45 pm we only had Severe Thunderstorm Watches. Within 15 minutes, everything was upgraded to Warnings, with additional warnings about being in imminent danger. A few minutes later it hit. I’ve never heard winds like that. All of the transformers around us blew in 2-3 minutes. I was so thankful I had gotten a “gut feeling” and checked the weather channel online. Otherwise, I would have been caught completely unaware.
I thought we were well prepared for unexpected disasters. We really have worked towards not having to rush out and get or do anything should disaster hit. We weren’t prepared like we thought we were. Suddenly we needed extra coolers and plenty of ice to keep from losing the significant amount of frozen meat we had stored away. Yesterday morning I braved Wal-Mart with three small children attempting to save our food. You cannot imagine the mayhem unless you have already gone through it. Thankfully there were no riots or fights, and our community really did pull together to make it through.
I am left with a strong warning though: Prepare, Prepare, Prepare. You probably aren’t as prepared as yo
Report Post »tonydanibradbury
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 1:33pm* I am left with a strong warning though: Prepare, Prepare, Prepare. You probably aren’t as well prepared as you think you are.
Report Post »TyrannyNoMore
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 1:20pmI just hope that Chief Justice Roberts was walking under one of those trees when they came down in the storm.
Report Post »SilentReader
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 2:29pmI think he left town for some remote spot after he betrayed America. This will be John Roberts dark legacy.
Report Post »AmericanStrega
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 12:48pmThis type of situation is why everyone should prepare themselves and their family to survive without essential services. Canned foods, water, batteries, radio, etc…Sadly people don’t realize things like this can happen to them. They expect someone else (government) to always be there to help them. I think the majority of this country have been brainwashed into believing everything they need will always be there for the taking. Sad.
Report Post »TJexcite
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 12:36pmNo nuclear EMP test run done by nature. Now is the time to shine and rebuild.
Report Post »Snowleopard {gallery of cat folks}
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 12:25pmMay God help them out that are affected by the storms destruction.
I can all too easily see Obama making political gain with this matter in pushing the UN Agenda 21, demanding consessions from the effected states and communities before allowing relief funds and support to be carried to them; and to punish all his enemies any way he can.
He cannot resist this kind of emergency, as they did say “never let a perfectly good emergency go to waste.’
Watch your backs everyone.
Report Post »drbage
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 12:34pmPerhaps he’ll use the time to fly over the affected areas so he can launch another 18 minute vomit inducing plea for more money.
Report Post »Will James Carville be there to scream “We’re dying heah!”?
aChameleon
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 12:21pmBetween the storms and fires, there have been a lot of tree fatalities lately.
Report Post »loriann12
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 12:21pmBetter get used to it, that’s the America Barry wants for everyone….no power, no water, no electronics, no internet, etc. Stoneage, baby. I better not hear a single commie or progressive complain.
Report Post »oldwmn
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 12:35pmThe Amish have been living a fantastic life doing this for 400 years here in the USA and are making a fortune selling Quilts, Furniture, Produce, ect does not bother them one bit Obama has nothing to do with this its LAZY PEOPLE who do not stockpile food, batteris, hand crank radios, water,ect.
Report Post »Steelheadisadouche
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 12:51pmActually, it’s his people that inhabit the shelters first, look for free transport first, get the free cold water first, and free food first. Many are complaining that the free 0 phones aren’t working, because the free cell towers don’t have the free power. Thanks for all the free stuff you provide to dc and it’s environs. Shut up, get back to work to provide the free services to the poor 0 supporters.
Report Post »CatB
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 1:16pmRead this book .. The Harbinger … God has removed his protective “hedge” from around the United States.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Harbinger-ancient-mystery-Americas/dp/161638610X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341162894&sr=8-1&keywords=the+harbinger
Report Post »tonydanibradbury
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 1:31pmOLDWMN-
While many could have been better prepared in terms of food, water, batteries, radios, etc. most of the problems have been due to the elderly being exposed to extreme heat, as well as freezers and fridges no longer working. Most of the injuries were from flying debri. We already had a large cooler, but realized suddenly that with little ice to fill it, and quite a bit of frozen meat and perishable goods in the fridge, we would need more coolers and quite a few bags of ice.
No, we weren’t well-prepared in that area. I have learned a valuable lesson and will begin focusing more heavily on shelf-stable foods instead of stockpiling meat into our freezer during great sales. However, we were fully prepared in the other areas of basic survival. Yet, there we were, in Wal-Mart, trying to get extra coolers and ice, along with so many others.
Be careful with your instant assumptions that people struggling through a situation are only struggling because of their own laziness. We were not lazy, neither were many of our neigbors and friends who had prepared as best as they could. I wonder how well you would do if in a matter of minutes you were suddenly thrust into our situation?
Report Post »cmonnow
Posted on July 1, 2012 at 3:26pmlol – you Blazers are so pitifully cowardly and clueless… so the President is the cause of the storm ?? it’s all part of his grand scheme ?? how about this one – if we didn’t pay taxes, then who would remove the debris from this ? ..the libertarian tree gnomes ??
blaming it on Obama is easier than considering the cause of the hottest summer on record. much easier than considering the causes of our ever-increasing temperatures..
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