Storms and strong winds late Saturday downed trees and wires throughout the Philadelphia region, and more severe weather is forecast into Monday.
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A slew of wind-damaged trees and wires in the suburban counties were reported to authorities and the National Weather Service late Saturday and Sunday morning. Such debris briefly suspended service on the Lansdale/Doylestown regional rail line during July Fourth celebrations.
Thousands of people, largely in Chester and Bucks Counties, were also without power early Sunday, Peco’s online tracker showed. During the storms’ peak, at about 10:45 p.m., that number reached almost 50,000. By 2:20 p.m. Sunday, it had fallen to less than 7,000.
The outages came as Peco workers, from linemen to call center staff, were on strike. Negotiations between the union and energy company were ongoing Sunday afternoon.
Bucks County officials were able to evacuate Independence Day festivities ahead of the storm, county Emergency Management Director George Wilson said.
While a pine tree fell into a home in Upper Southampton and another downed tree hit a car in Doylestown, no one was injured, he said. Additional felled trees and debris caused road closures Sunday.
“Overall, we were pretty lucky,” Wilson said.
But in Philadelphia — where heavy rain, lightning, and wind gusts near 60 mph suspended the city’s Semiquincentennial concert on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway — minimal power outages were reported, according to the city’s Office of Emergency Management.
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Spokesperson Jeffrey Kolakowski said tree limbs and vegetation were knocked over on and around the Parkway and have since been cleared.
Another round of severe weather and extreme heat was forecast, . Heavy rainfall and winds on Sunday and heavy showers and thunderstorms on Monday may bring flash flooding to the Philly area.
The weather service issued a flood watch Sunday that was in effect until 8 p.m. on Monday. It covered much of the region, including Philadelphia; Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery Counties; Camden and Gloucester Counties; and Northwestern Burlington County.
The inclement weather may hamper cleanup efforts and power restoration, Wilson said.
Chester County leaders were asking residents to “stay weather aware.”
“Our teams stand ready to assist our community,” spokesperson Kevin Beck said in a statement.
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