Washington County residents without power after storm
SOUTH FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) - Storms moved through the area overnight, and residents in Washington County are dealing with the aftermath.
It's a familiar sound for residents on Alamae Lakes Road in South Franklin Township as West Penn Power crews work to bring back service after the storm. They say they just had a power outage two weeks ago from a different storm.
"It was really windy," said Liz Gessler. "I kind of figured we would lose our power because we always lose our power."
"It was a light show," said Jessica Freeman. "There was lightning everywhere. We actually have a tree that came down right there, too."
The strong winds and rain destroyed trees and brought down wires across Washington County, leaving their mark on the ground and in homes. West Penn Power said there were about 700 outages and South Franklin, East Finley and West Finley townships were among those hit the hardest.
"I've been up since about 1:30 a.m. when the power went out," said Freeman. "There's no sleeping at that point. It's hot. It's humid."
It spoiled residents' rest and meals.
"Unfortunately, we don't have a generator," said Freeman. "Food -- that's our main concern right now. We can take care of ourselves and deal with the heat."
Even for those who do have generators, they say it's not cheap.
"We're pretty self-sufficient now with a generator," said Frank Gessler. "But the cost of gasoline to put in that generator, you think about that too. You might be able to stay in a hotel cheaper."
Residents hope West Penn Power has a quicker response this time around and trims their trees to help avoid this in the future.
The company said the power should be back on by this evening.
