{"id":118018,"date":"2026-02-19T13:11:15","date_gmt":"2026-02-19T13:11:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/118018\/"},"modified":"2026-02-19T13:11:15","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T13:11:15","slug":"more-than-40000-still-without-power-in-delaware-county","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/118018\/","title":{"rendered":"More than 40,000 still without power in Delaware County"},"content":{"rendered":"

PECO is showing about 26,000 Delaware County customers without power on Friday night at 6:30 in the wake of the Thursday late afternoon line of storms that rolled through the area<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Numerous roads were closed around Delaware County on Friday morning but later most reopened during the storm cleanup.<\/p>\n

And, it\u2019s out of the frying pan and soon into the fire with an excessive heat watch starting Sunday for a few days of broiling temperatures.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, power outage numbers ramped up quickly after 5:30 p.m. Thursday when the squall line blew into Delaware County, packing winds in excess of 50 mph. There were numerous calls for wires down, limbs down, accidents, pedestrians struck, water rescues, house fire calls and every other kind of storm damage.<\/p>\n

\"ApartmentApartment building damage in Upper Darby on Thursday evening. (COURTESY OF MANOA FIRE COMPANY)<\/p>\n

The individual outages were up to nearly 75,000 in Delaware County at the height of the disruption with nearly 300,000 in the entire PECO service area, an unusually high number.<\/p>\n

Tom Brubaker of PECO couldn\u2019t be certain when all the customers would be returned to service.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a multi-day restoration event. It\u2019s a fairly significant event,\u201d he said Friday. \u201cThis impacted our entire service area.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brubaker added that the utility has almost 1,000 people in the field working on repairs and that crews from other providers were coming to help in with those repairs.<\/p>\n

He said that the soggy grounds contributed to trees being uprooted.<\/p>\n

He also said he couldn\u2019t provide an accurate cumulative total of customers who lost power. Such a total would include any customers who were briefly out of service, but were switched to a different circuit and power was quickly restored. He such a cumulative number would distort the perception of the incident.<\/p>\n

Mike Connolly, Delaware County communications director, reported that the 911 center received over 2,800 calls for service from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday during the height of the storm.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe 911 center followed their normal staffing procedures during this event, which includes breaks for employees while ensuring that all lines remain fully staffed at all times,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

At 5:02 p.m. Thursday a large and extremely dangerous tornado was located over Landenberg, or 7 miles north of Newark, moving northeast at 40 mph, the weather service said.<\/p>\n

It was called a particularly dangerous situation: \u201cConsiderable damage to homes, businesses, and vehicles is likely and complete destruction is possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Friday, the office in Mount Holly said the following regarding the passage of the line of thunderstorms:<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the damage reports we have received thus far from the storms yesterday, Thursday, June 19, it appears the damage was caused by straight line winds of 60 to 70 mph. At this point we don\u2019t see any evidence that a tornado occurred. However, we will continue to evaluate as we get additional reports.\u201d<\/p>\n

Heat is next<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t be fooled by the pleasant temperatures and north wind on Friday. That pattern of cool fronts bringing crisp air into the region for days is not going to stick, as it has in recent weeks. This time hot is going to win, and by this point in summer it would be a surprise if it didn\u2019t.<\/p>\n

The National Weather Service-issued extreme heat watch starts at 8 a.m. Sunday and, for now, continues through 8 a.m. Wednesday. Daily heat indices are expected to be over 100 degrees. The start time for the watch was moved up 24 hours on Friday afternoon.<\/p>\n

Expect high temperatures in the mid-to-upper 90s for several days, according to the forecast. Date records might be threatened.<\/p>\n

Some details from the watch:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Heat related illnesses increase significantly during extreme heat and high humidity events.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Heat will have a cumulative effect on the body as the week goes on as little relief will come overnight.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Do not leave young children and pets in unattended vehicles. Car interiors will reach lethal temperatures in a matter of minutes.<\/p>\n

Brubaker said PECO is prepared for the heat, too, but urged utility customers who remain without power when the heat hits to seek out public cooling centers.<\/p>\n

Connolly said seniors can now pick up free fans at any senior center in the county and that will be going on all summer.<\/p>\n

The county has designated the following libraries as cooling centers:<\/p>\n

\u2022 Helen Kate Furness Free Library, 100 N. Providence Road Wallingford.<\/p>\n

\u2022 J. Lewis Crozer Library, 620 Engle St., Chester.<\/p>\n

\u2022 Lansdowne Public Library, 55 S. Lansdowne Ave., Lansdowne<\/p>\n

\u2022 Marple Public Library, 2599 Sproul Road, Broomall<\/p>\n

\u2022 Newtown Public Library, 201 Bishop Hollow Road, Newtown Square<\/p>\n

\u2022 Rachel Kohl Community Library, 687 Smithbridge Road, Glen Mills<\/p>\n

\u2022 Radnor Memorial Library, 114 W. Wayne Ave., Wayne<\/p>\n

\u2022 Sharon Hill Public Library, 246 Sharon Ave., Sharon Hill<\/p>\n

\u2022 Tinicum Memorial Public Library, 620 Seneca St., Essington<\/p>\n

\u2022 Upper Darby Township & Sellers Memorial Free Public Library \u2013 Municipal Branch, 501 Bywood Ave., Upper Darby<\/p>\n

\u2022 Upper Darby Township & Sellers Memorial Free Public Library \u2013 Primos Branch, 409 Ashland Ave., Secane<\/p>\n

\u2022 Upper Darby Township & Sellers Memorial Free Public Library \u2013 Sellers Branch, 76 S. State Road, Upper Darby<\/p>\n

\u2022 Yeadon Public Library, 809 Longacre Blvd., Yeadon<\/p>\n

\"AnotherAnother scene of damage, this one in Haverford Township, on Thursday night. (PETE BANNAN -DAILY TIMES)<\/p>\n

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