Cleanup continues in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania suburbs after strong weekend storm knocks down trees, power lines

West Philadelphia neighborhoods continued to clean up Monday following weekend storms that knocked out power to thousands of homes, downed trees and spawned flash flooding.

At 53rd Street and Girard Avenue, utility crews restored power before noon. Neighbors tell CBS News Philadelphia they were without power since Saturday afternoon.

"If y'all could've been here just to hear the sound of that thunder, something I've never heard like that before in my life. I was so scared," said Rosemary Clemon, who lives on the block.

Over on West Thompson Street near North 57th, tree crews were out clearing debris. One tree not only uprooted a sidewalk but also smashed a parked car.

"I thought it was the porch furniture flying around, and I opened the door, and I just start screaming," a woman named Rasheeda said. Her car was the one totaled. 

"I'm just happy no one got hurt," she said.

In Wynnefield on Wyndale Avenue between North 56th and North 57th streets, city crews spent Monday afternoon clearing part of the street covered in tree limbs and branches.

"I've never seen anything like this, and I've never felt anything like that before. It was outrageous," Eleana Cain said of the storms.

She's lived on the block for more than 50 years. As of early Monday evening, the city said it's received more than 340 tree emergency calls and has started responding to more than 200 of them.

Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker on Sunday signed a disaster emergency declaration and is asking residents to report damage via 311.

Lower Merion recovers from damage, water rescues

Saturday's storm also left a trail of destruction across the Main Line.

Lower Merion was one of the hardest-hit communities. Township police said they responded to more than 500 calls for service in just four hours, including reports of downed trees, downed power lines and flooded roadways.

On Kent Road, a massive tree was uprooted, blocking the sidewalk, but it narrowly missed the home in front of it.

"It was a microburst or something, but it seemed like a tornado," Lower Merion Township homeowner Randy Shook said. "I've never seen anything like it."

According to Lower Merion Police Superintendent Andy Block, trees fell onto 12 homes. On Morris Road, crews used a crane to lift a large tree off the roof of a house.

"It was horrendous conditions that we had within the township between the rain, which was blowing sideways, and the wind," Block said. "Wind gusts were up to 70 miles an hour."

Emergency crews also carried out five water rescues, all involving motorists who drove into flooded roadways and became stranded.

"We always tell people not to do that," Block said. "They should turn around and not drown."

The severe weather knocked out power to thousands of customers across Lower Merion Township. Utility crews spent much of the day restoring electricity.

"We briefly lost power, but we're fortunate to have a generator, which helped us," Lower Merion Township homeowner Richard Ross said.

Many residents said the storm's intensity left them shaken.

"It's something we're going to talk about for a long time," Lower Merion Township homeowner Jim Young said.

Township officials continue to assess the damage as cleanup efforts move forward.

What is a microburst?

The National Weather Service says at least four separate microbursts caused the damage in the region on Saturday.

The NWS surveyed the damage and found four distinct microbursts raced from Lower Merion through West and South Philadelphia between about 2:45 p.m. and 3:15 p.m. Wind speeds were estimated between 60 and 70 miles per hour, leaving a damage path roughly 12 miles long.

So, what exactly is a microburst? 

Inside a thunderstorm, rain falls into a layer of dry air. As that rain evaporates, it cools the air, making it much heavier. That cool air crashes toward the ground, then spreads outward in every direction like water hitting the floor. The resulting straight-line winds can be destructive and can reach over 100 mph in some cases.