More than 5,000 still without power in Lehigh Valley as snow downs trees, power lines: ‘This could be a multi-day restoration effort’ [Update]

Wet, heavy snow from a coastal storm that walloped the Lehigh Valley on Tuesday downed numerous trees and power lines, causing widespread power outages.

While the snow ended by late morning, the outages are lingering. As of 6 p.m., more than 7,000 customers remained without power in Lehigh and Northampton counties, according to outage data from PPL and Met-Ed.

At the peak of the outages around 11 a.m., more than 16,000 outages were reported.

One area particularly hard hit was Lynn Township, which had more than 1,500 outages Tuesday afternoon, according to Met-Ed. Upper Milford Township had 1,124 outages, according to PPL.

Other municipalities with a high number of outages Tuesday afternoon included Easton and Palmer Township, which each had around 950 outages, according to Met-Ed.

Met-Ed, which also distributes electricity in the two counties, reported about 27,000 outages systemwide during the morning, spokesperson Todd Meyers said. Met-Ed predominantly serves the eastern edge of the Lehigh Valley, including Northampton, Monroe and Bucks counties, but its territory stretches into Lehigh and about a dozen other counties.

“We have been able to restore power, but we continue to get new outages,” Meyers said.

He said the storm produced heavy, water-laden precipitation, which can cause trees to sag and fall into utility lines, damaging wires and poles. He also said it has been difficult for crews to assess the damage while the snow is falling, with slippery and unsafe road conditions.

The same was occurring at PPL, spokesperson Dana Burns said. The company has called in additional crews from throughout its other utilities for assistance in getting the power on. Some 85,000 customers in its 29 counties remained in the dark as of Tuesday afternoon, according to its website.

“It is important to stress, this could be a multi-day restoration effort,” Burns said. “We will continue to work as quickly and safely as possible.”

She said the company’s website, pplelectric.com/outage is updating estimates on when customers’ power will be restored.

Check back for updates.

Morning Call reporter Anthony Salamone can be reached at [email protected].

Snow arrives in Lehigh Valley as coastal storm moves in | PHOTOS

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