WEATHER Storm cuts power to many residents

Mercer County was the hardest hit, and power restoration is taking longer.
YOUNGSTOWN -- It may take until at least this evening before power is restored to all of the Ohio Edison and Penn Power customers who lost power when a powerful, fast-moving thunderstorm hit the area Monday evening, according to Paul Harkey, Ohio Edison area manager.
Crews from the Cleveland area helped to restore power here after the storm uprooted trees, broke utility poles and knocked down power lines in many locations. Harkey said crews worked throughout the night and fresh crews were being brought in from other areas today.
With winds as high as 60 mph, the power outage began at 6:34 p.m., initially affecting some 40,000 Ohio Edison and Penn Power customers across Trumbull, Mahoning, Columbiana, Mercer, Lawrence and Butler counties, Harkey said.
As of 11 p.m., half of them were still without power, Harkey said.He said power was restored by morning to most customers in Mahoning County, where Youngstown and Austintown were the hardest hit. Columbiana, Lawrence and Butler counties also were in good shape by morning, Harkey said.
What's being done
Trumbull and Mercer counties were harder hit, and Harkey said he hoped all power could be restored this afternoon in Trumbull County, where crews were focused on the Warren and Kinsman areas.
As for Mercer County, Harkey said that area was the most affected and crews were having more difficulty. He expected power to be restored "sometime tonight, at best."
In Canfield, a Giant Eagle store manager concerned about the high winds Monday asked customers, who were waiting for the rain to abate before returning to their cars, to move away from the large plate-glass windows at the front of the store.
But the storm ended quickly, and musicians in the gazebo at the Village Green in Canfield began performing an outdoor concert promptly at 7 p.m. as scheduled, with a small audience standing under umbrellas next to the gazebo.