Updated 11:48 p.m. April 30.
Widespread power outages and road closures continued on Wednesday in Centre County after a severe storm on Tuesday evening took down trees and power lines throughout the area.
More than 24,000 West Penn Power customers in Centre County remained without power as of 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday, down from more than 36,000 on Tuesday night. West Penn Power spokesperson Todd Meyers said the storm, which had winds up to 80 mph in some places, left widespread damage.
While restoration times had not been available for much of the day, on Wednesday evening the West Penn outages map was updated to show estimated restoration times of 5 p.m. on Thursday for most of Centre County.
“We are in the process of assessing that damage and hope to determine some ETRs (estimated time of restoration) before too long,” Meyers wrote in an email on Wednesday morning. “One thing is clear, this will be a multi-day restoration for FirstEnergy throughout much of Western and Central Pennsylvania. Think marathon, not sprint.”
West Penn Power and Penelec’s service areas had approximately 325,000 outages and that was down to about 185,000 by 11 a.m. Wednesday. Meyers said that “every effort is being made to get the lights back on for our customers as quickly as safety permits.”
“We have reached out for assistance to help our local West Penn Power and Penelec crews make repairs and restore power to our customers,” Meyers wrote. “We have several hundred line contractors and FirstEnergy crews from unaffected areas headed to the Centre County region packed for several days to work. You may also see a helicopter in the air patrolling lines for damage to identify areas for repairs.”
More than 3,400 workers are involved in the restoration effort in the West Penn and Penelec service areas, according to the company.
Customers can check the West Penn Power outages site for updates.
“We recognize electricity is the lifeblood of modern living and commerce and greatly appreciate our customers’ patience as we work round the clock to get their power restored,” Meyers wrote.
Road Closures
Several state routes in Centre County are closed and PennDOT expected the closures to be in place through the end of the week:
- West College Avenue between Whitehall Road and Bristol Avenue in Ferguson Township.
- Route 144 between Upper Georges Valley Road and Short Road in Potter Township.
- Axemann Road between Rishel Hill Road and Steeplechase Drive in Spring Township.
- Fox Hollow Road between Hemlock Hill Road and Black Bear Lane in Patton Township.
“PennDOT urges drivers to take alternate routes and, if they encounter road closures, to obey the posted signage and not proceed further along the route,” the department wrote. “There have been several instances of drivers ignoring posted signage, which places them in proximity to downed utilities and puts them at risk of serious injury or death due to electrocution.”
State College Borough reported the following road closures on Wednesday:
- Westerly Parkway is closed between South Sparks Street and O’Bryan Lane
- Easterly Parkway is closed between South Pugh Street and Old Boalsburg Road
- 1000 block of South Pugh Street is closed
- 400 block of Orlando Avenue is closed
- 300 block of West Fairmount Avenue is restricted to one lane
- 600 block of Berry Alley is closed
- Nimitz Avenue and Penfield Road are closed
Downtown traffic signals are operational with generators, with the exception of the South Allen Street intersections at Beaver and College avenues. Because of that, the 100 block of South Allen Street is temporarily closed to traffic. Light towers were being deployed at several intersections on Wednesday night along Beaver Avenue as an added safety measure at night.
“The Borough roads closed earlier remain closed as we wait for line crews to clear and repair the downed power lines,” Mayor Ezra Nanes wrote in a Facebook post on Wednesday evening. “Public Works crews continue to canvas neighborhoods and remove debris, which will continue through tomorrow.”
A borough map with updated road closure information is available online.
In addition to the section of West College Avenue between Bristol and Whitehall, Ferguson Township reported the following local road closures as of 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday:
- West Aaron Drive at Martin Street
- Marengo Road
- 1200 block of West Gatesburg Road
- West Park Hills Avenue between Princeton and Greenwood Circle
CATA
The Centre Area Transportation Authority is experiencing several detours on fixed routes and electrical outages at the Customer Service Center,
All fixed routes are operational but the N, R, AC, CC, HU and H routes are experiencing detours. For detailed information regarding detours visit catabus.com/rider-alerts/.
Some bus shelters have been damaged by the storm. Passengers should avoid the affected facilities and remain cautious of downed wires and other storm-related hazards. CATA is currently doing a systematic survey of bus stops to assess storm damage.
CATA’s Customer Service Center, 108 E. Beaver Ave. is experiencing and electrical outage. Customers can sill call the Customer Service number at (814) 238-CATA (2282) to schedule trips for CATA Go CATA Ride, Bellefonte/Benner B-Line and Willowbank Building/Courthouse, but should anticipate delays.
“CATA drivers were among the first responders to act during the storm,” the authority wrote. “When a family couldn’t reach 911 while their house was on fire, a CATA bus driver communicated with a firefighter to alert them to the emergency’s location. Throughout the storm, CATA continued to operate, ensuring that patrons were able to get home safely. CATA is dedicated to serving the community and is currently assisting the solid waste authority by fueling their vehicles.”
Resources
• Residents on wells that need water can use the water filling station at the Alpha Fire Station in Patton Township, 2598 Green Tech Drive. The station is donated by State College Borough Water Authority and is free for residents to use.
• Those without power can use the College Township meeting room at 1481 E. College Ave. or the Patton Township meeting room at 100 Patton Plaza to charge devices. The College Township meeting room is available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and can be accessed through the main doors and up the stairs to the left. The Patton Township room is accessed through the lower entrance marked meeting room and is available from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
• Maine Bay & Berry Co. has offered refrigeration space for anyone without power who needs to store medicine or other critical items that must stay cold. Message Maine Bay & Berry on Facebook or Instagram, or call 814-954-1560 to make arrangements
• Snow Shoe EMS, 492 W. Sycamore Rd., is open for residents to charge devices and have a cup of coffee or tea.
• Miles Township Fire Company, 102 Broad Street, Rebersburg, is open to charges devices.
• Centre Hall Volunteer Fire Company, 134 Witmer Avenue, is open from 2 to 9 p.m. for showers, water, device charging and ice to keep food cold (bring a cooler). Contact the fire company via Facebook message if access is needed outside those hours.
• For Penn State students living off campus, the university provided multiple resources on campus, where power and WiFi are functioning.
Closings
• Penn State Health’s Benner Pike location was closed on Wednesday but reopened on Thursday
• Sever Mount Nittany Health locations were closed on Wednesday. The Bellefonte lab remained closed on Thursday
• The Centre County Courthouse was closed on Wednesday but will reopen at 8 a.m. on Thursday.
• Schlow Library was closed on Wednesday but reopened on Thursday
• State College Area School District schools are operating on a two-hour delay Thursday, with several bus routes not running due to closed roads. Students without transportation would be excused with a note. All SCASD schools had been closed on Wednesday because half were without power and because of road closures.
• Bald Eagle Area School District moved to a flexible instruction day on Wednesday. In the Bellefonte Area School District, Marion-Walker Elementary was on a flexible instruction day on Wednesday. And in Penns Valley, Miles Township Elementary students were transferred to Centre Hall Elementary due to a power outage.
Many other businesses were closed on Wednesday throughout the area and may remain closed into Thursday.
