COLUMBUS – The number of customers waiting for the power to be restored after a winter storm had dwindled to a handful in central Ohio by Tuesday morning.
Almost 38,000 American Electric Power Ohio customers saw their power restored Monday as crews were able to use bucket trucks once winds from Winter Storm Quiana subsided.
AEP reported that customers in Lancaster might not be back on until Wednesday, according to an update posted by the utility Tuesday afternoon.
Estimated restoration times:
Midnight Tuesday – Newark
Noon Tuesday – Lancaster
There were fewer than 500 customers still without power in central Ohio, down from 12,000 Monday morning. At the height of the storm, AEP reported that 76,000 customers statewide were without electricity.
Warming centers were opened in communities still without power Monday night:
Sunbury Library 44 Burrer Drive, Sunbury (9 a.m.–8 p.m.)
Delaware Main Library 84 E. Winter Street, Delaware (9 a.m.–9 p.m.)
Powell Branch Library 460 South Liberty Road, Powell (9 a.m.–9 p.m.)
Orange Branch Library 7171 Gooding Blvd., Delaware (9 a.m.–9 p.m.)
Ostrander Branch Library 75 North Fourth Street, Ostrander (10 a.m.–8 p.m.)
There were reports of winds gusts of 50 mph or higher across Franklin County and surrounding areas of central Ohio with similar conditions across much of the state. In Sandusky, a motorist captured video of a tractor-trailer flipping over on a bridge.
[3:35 PM] The gust of 64 MPH at KOSU is the strongest non-thunderstorm-related wind gust officially measured anywhere within our area of responsibility since April 2, 2016. Before that, the last time a non-thunderstorm-related wind gust reached at least 64 MPH was April 28, 2011.
— NWS Wilmington OH (@NWSILN) February 24, 2019
A gust of 64 mph at OSU’s Don Scott Airport on the Northwest Side was the strongest non-thunderstorm-related gust officially measured anywhere in central Ohio since 2016, according to the National Weather Service in Wilmington.
Wind gusts in the 25-35 mph range persisted into Monday morning, causing wind chills to dip into the single digits.
The winds caused problems for people in many parts of the country’s eastern half.
A wind speed of 74 mph — hurricane strength — was reported in Tucker County, West Virginia, on Sunday night. A speed of 61 mph was recorded at the Pittsburgh airport.
In New York City, sidewalk food carts rocked precariously in the gusts early Monday.
Wind advisories and warnings are in effect through Monday in the mid-Atlantic and Northeast.