PENNSYLVANIA, USA — Thousands of power outages are still affecting residents across Central Pennsylvania.
Heavy winds entered our area on Thursday night and into Friday morning, causing fallen trees, branches, and power lines. In turn, a number of power outages have been reported.
The number of affected Met-Ed customers in York County has lessened to under 2,500 as of 2 p.m., and nearly all customers have had their power restored in Franklin County, according to Met-Ed.
Outages in Cumberland County are sitting at under 200, and more than 700 still don't have power in Lebanon County.
Adams County outages also remain about the same with more than 300 customers without power, and Dauphin County outages have decreased to less than 600.
Perry and Lancaster counties are almost fully restored.
According to PPL, York, Lebanon, and Cumberland Counties' customers all almost have their power back, while more than 300 in Lancaster County are still being affected. However, Dauphin County outages have dropped to less than 200.
There are also a little more than 200 PPL customers still without power in Perry County.
A Met-Ed spokesperson says wind is not a direct threat to power lines and poles, but it is a threat to trees and branches, which can fall on lines and cause an outage.
Met-Ed says it has extra lineman and tree-trimmers on-hand this morning to help with any possible outages and to clear debris from lines.
The company also wants people to remember that wires hanging on the ground can still be very dangerous.
"They don't need to be skipping and arching or spitting sparks to be dangerous," Met-Ed spokesperson Todd Meyers said. "They can look totally innocent and inert and they may well still have electricity running through them. People must stay at least 30 feet away, keep kids and pets away. Just treat any low hanging wire or any wire on the ground with respect."
If there are hanging wires around your home, you can report it by calling your local power company or 911.