Strong storms topple trees, knock out power, close schools across Philadelphia region

Strong storms swept across Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware on Tuesday night, toppling trees and creating a messy Wednesday morning commute.

The storms led to multiple school closures across the Philadelphia region as crews worked in the hardest-hit areas to get roads back open.

The NEXT Weather team says more potentially severe storms could arrive in the region on Wednesday night into Thursday.

Mantua, New Jersey, schools closed

Trees fell onto homes and roads in Mantua Township, Gloucester County, on Tuesday night.

Power was out in the area, and police officers were setting up flares to light up dark areas on the local roads.

Mantua Township School District closed schools on Wednesday, with the district saying it would reassess whether schools could reopen on Thursday.

Resident Rich Heady said storms swept through quickly.

"My wife and I were sitting in the living room watching TV, and it was thundering and lightning like a normal storm," Heady said, "And next thing you know, like golf-sized hail started coming down and the wind picked up. ... A loud whistle went through – and then as fast as it came through, it stopped."

Heady said strong storms hit the area five years ago around the time of Hurricane Ida, which added to the fear he had.

Mantua Township Fire Department said several streets are closed and that crews worked through the night to clear roadways.

Residents were warned not to drive around barricades on the roads.

Atlantic City Electric's power outage tracker showed thousands of customers were without power in the Mantua and Deptford area in Gloucester County.

Mantua, New Jersey, resident unharmed after tree branch falls into home

When the storm arrived, a tree limb pierced through the roof and ceiling of a Mantua, New Jersey, townhome owned by Guy Edwards.

Edwards said he was watching a movie when he saw lightning outside and heard a clap of thunder. 

"It was the closest I've ever heard it," Edwards said.

Edwards then ran upstairs to see the damage to the "man cave" in the home. Water was pouring through a hole in the ceiling and a tree limb was protruding through.

"We scrambled and got buckets and pots and pans, and we caught a lot of the water. We emptied out the buckets at least four or five times," Edwards said.

Home possibly struck by lightning in Exeter, Pennsylvania

The storms hit parts of Pennsylvania, too. In Exeter Township, Berks County, a home caught fire and it may have been caused by a lightning strike.

The Exeter Township Volunteer Fire Department responded to the home on Wegman Road just before 7 p.m. and found the home with a slight haze or smoke in the basement. 

The asphalt in the home's driveway was broken apart and other parts of the property were damaged.

Storm damage in Sadsbury Township, Pennsylvania

Large trees were blocking roads in Sadsbury Township, Chester County, according to the local fire department.

The Keystone Valley Fire Department shared these photos of trees downed on Route 372 between Wilmington Road and Old Wilmington Road.  

At one point on Wednesday morning, Chester County had over 20,000 customers without power.

Wilmington, Delaware, school closes due to power outage

A charter school in Wilmington, Delaware is closed due to power outages in the area.

Odyssey Charter School closed Wednesday due to the storm impact, according to its Facebook page.

"Due to the impact of last night's storms in the area, OCS is part of the 16,000 people in DE without power. Delmarva Power is actively addressing the outage," the school's post read.