Power Outage in Bethlehem, PA

Power was also knocked out.

There were a few reports of downed trees and power outages near Easton. Time estimated from radar.

Power lines were downed near Deer Run Rd. Time estimated from radar.

Power lines were downed near Derhammer Rd. Time estimated from radar.

Several reports of downed trees and power lines in the vicinity of Tumble Creek Rd. Time estimated from radar.

A CWOP site in Palmer measured a wind gust of 53 mph. A number of reports of downed trees and power lines were received, indicating sustained tropical storm force winds likely occurred.

Several reports were received of trees and wires down west of Belfast in the Bushkill Two area. Numerous power outages and a few road closures were reported. Time estimated from radar.

An mPing report of 3 inch diameter tree limbs or power poles snapped. Time estimated from radar.

Power lines were downed in the area. Time estimated from radar.

Power lines were downed in the area. Time estimated from radar.

Trees down and siding blown off of a residence in North Catsauqua. Trees down on power lines near Hackett Avenue in Wilson. Power lines down on Bushkill Drive near Tatamy. Tree down on power lines on Jacobsburg Road near Plainfield Twp.

Several reports of downed trees and power lines in Moore Twp...Allen Twp...and Chapman. Time estimated from radar.

Strong northwest winds with gusts to over 60 MPH occurred on March 2nd and 3rd. This led to widespread damage to trees and power lines, which in turn induced extensive power outages across the region. At one point more than 36,000 customers were without power in Northampton County. A wind gust of 60 MPH was reported at Lehigh Valley International Airport at 1720EST on March 2nd. A wind gust of 60 MPH was also reported at Bushkill Center at 1152EST. Heavy rainfall occurred over eastern Pennsylvania on March 1st and 2nd, with widespread rainfall amounts of 1 to 2 inches. Areal and minor small stream flooding occurred.

Multiple trees and power lines downed due to thunderstorm winds in North Catasauqua.

Numerous trees, power lines and telephone poles down due to thunderstorm winds. Some of the trees were blown onto homes and a barn. A tractor trailer was also overturned due to the wind and moved 30 feet.

A severe thunderstorm knocked down trees and wires and caused power outages in East Allen Township. The southbound lanes of Airport Road (Pennsylvania State Route 987) were closed near Hanoverville Road.

Thunderstorms with torrential downpours caused poor drainage flooding as well as flash flooding of smaller creeks in central and southern Northampton County. The heaviest rain fell in a northwest to southeast axis across the county from eastern East Allen Township through Lower Nazareth Township, Bethlehem Township, Lower Saucon Township and Williams Township. In Bethlehem, flash flooding forced the closure of Easton Avenue at Willow Park Road. Flash flooding along the Nancy Run also washed out sections of Willow Park Road south through Walnut Street. A large sink hole near a Pennsylvania Power and Light transmission tower on Clermont Street forced the evacuation of 25 to 30 families for a day. A home on Garrison Street had damage to its foundation and sidewalk. Wilson Avenue, near the Lehigh River became a river itself. Other roadways near the Lehigh River were washed away. In Easton, parts of Hope Road washed away. Event precipitation totals included 2.89 inches in Glendon and 2.21 inches in Easton.

Thunderstorms with torrential downpours caused poor drainage flooding as well as flash flooding of smaller creeks in central and southern Northampton County. The heaviest rain fell in a northwest to southeast axis across the county from eastern East Allen Township through Lower Nazareth Township, Bethlehem Township, Lower Saucon Township and Williams Township. In Bethlehem, flash flooding forced the closure of Easton Avenue at Willow Park Road. Flash flooding along the Nancy Run also washed out sections of Willow Park Road south through Walnut Street. A large sink hole near a Pennsylvania Power and Light transmission tower on Clermont Street forced the evacuation of 25 to 30 families for a day. A home on Garrison Street had damage to its foundation and sidewalk. Wilson Avenue, near the Lehigh River became a river itself. Other roadways near the Lehigh River were washed away. In Easton, parts of Hope Road washed away. Event precipitation totals included 2.89 inches in Glendon and 2.21 inches in Easton.

A severe thunderstorm caused significant tree damage in Upper Mount Bethel Township. The combination of damaging winds and lightning caused about 6,500 homes and businesses to lose power in the Lehigh Valley. It took until the night of the 10th to have power fully restored.

A severe thunderstorm knocked down large tree limbs in Bethlehem as well as a tree at the intersection of West Elizabeth Avenue and Main Street. The greatest number of power outages in Northampton County was concentrated within Bethlehem.

A severe thunderstorm generated a wind gust of 61 mph in Bushkill Township and tore down utility poles as well as a large pine tree. The same line of thunderstorms produced a wind gust to 47 mph in Forks Township. Pennsylvania Power and Light reported about 3,500 of its customers lost power in Northampton County.

Torrential rains resulted in flash flooding in northeastern Northampton County. Several home basements were flooded with two to five feet of water on Messinger Street in Bangor Borough as an underground creek rose and flooded. One family on Messenger Street was rescued. Two garages on the street were also damaged. Fuel oil leaked into the water. Flooding closed Messinger Road, Viaduct Road, South Main Street, and Rutt Road in the borough. No injuries were reported. Power was out to a number of homes for precautionary reasons also because water reached into the ground floor. The flooding occurred because of an underground creek near the headwaters of Martins Creek. Numerous streets were also flooded in Penn Argyl Borough. Flooding waters also damaged a few homes in East Bangor Borough. The axis of heaviest rain extended from Penn Argyl and Washington Township northeastward through Upper Mount Bethel Township in Northampton County. Event precipitation totals included 3.54 inches in Nazareth and 2.07 inches in Bethlehem. These municipalities were south of where the heaviest rain fell and Doppler Radar storm total estimates reached around 5 inches within the axis of heaviest rain.

A severe thunderstorm knocked down numerous large tree limbs and wires around the intersection of Union Boulevard and Pennsylvania Avenue in Bethlehem. Some power outages occurred.

A severe thunderstorm wind gust knocked down numerous trees, wires, and power poles in East Allen Township at 4:08 pm EDT on the 22nd. The township had to declare a disaster emergency because of the wind damage. The Red Cross was assisting one resident with housing.

A severe thunderstorm knocked down several trees in Bethlehem. About 200 homes and businesses lost power.

A severe thunderstorm tore down trees on Riverside Drive in Lower Saucon Township. Pennsylvania Power and Light reported about 2,400 homes and businesses lost power in the Lehigh Valley because of the lightning and winds.

Freezing rain overspread the area during the early evening hours of the 6th and mixed with some sleet initially. Ice accumulated up to 0.40 inches, which caused pockets of power outages and also produced areas of slippery conditions.

A severe thunderstorm tore down several trees, tree limbs and power lines across Northampton County from around Walnutport southeast into Easton. The combination of wind and lightning caused about 13,000 Pennsylvania Power and Light (PPL) and Metropolitan Edison customers to lose power. All power was restored by 7 a.m. EDT the following morning. PPL outages occurred in Lehigh and Northampton Townships as well as the city of Bethlehem. Metropolitan Edison outages occurred in Glendon, College Hill and Palmer Township. A downed tree blocked one lane of traffic along Pennsylvania State Route 946 in Lehigh Township.

A severe thunderstorm tore down several trees, tree limbs and power lines across Northampton County from around Walnutport southeast into Easton. The combination of wind and lightning caused about 13,000 Pennsylvania Power and Light (PPL) and Metropolitan Edison customers to lose power. All power was restored by 7 a.m. EDT the following morning. PPL outages occurred in Lehigh and Northampton Townships as well as the city of Bethlehem. Metropolitan Edison outages occurred in Glendon, College Hill and Palmer Township. A downed tree blocked one lane of traffic along Pennsylvania State Route 946 in Lehigh Township.

A pair of severe thunderstorms caused wind damage across Northampton County from Moore Township east through Forks Township. About 8,000 homes and businesses lost power. Seven hundred still did not have power as of Noon EDT on the 8th. Wind damage occurred in Wind Gap, Moore, Plainfield, Nazareth, Washington and Forks Townships. Pennsylvania State Route 191 was closed in Plainfield Township because of downed trees. Community Drive in Moore Township was also closed because of a downed tree.

A severe thunderstorm knocked down several trees and wires in Bethlehem. Pennsylvania Power and Light reported about 9,000 of its customers in the Bethelhem area lost power. All power was restored by 3 a.m. EDT on the 28th.

A line of severe thunderstorms knocked down hundreds of trees and numerous wires throughout Northampton County, but affected the slate belt region in the upper part of the county the hardest. Upper Mount Bethel Township had the worst reported damage. In the township, the damaging winds knocked a mobile home off its foundation on Lake Minsi Drive, damaged another home to the point that might make it uninhabitable. Garages, porches, gazeboes and sheds were either blown over or damaged by fallen trees. Many shingles were blown off roofs. About 10 roadways were closed in the township. Sections of Creek Road, Lake Minsi Drive, Blue Mountain Drive, Gallery Lane, Fox Gap Road and Turkey Ridge suffered the most damage and many were closed the longest.|Elsewhere in the county in Portland Borough, many huge trees were knocked down. One downed tree badly damaged three prized vehicles kept in one garage. Two uprooted trees were leaning on another home. In Bangor Borough, two trees fell onto and damaged a home. In Bethlehem Township, a downed tree damaged a pick-up truck. A wind gust to 62 mph was measured in Lehigh Township.|About 13,000 homes and businesses lost power throughout the county; all were restored on the 3rd. |

A line of severe thunderstorms knocked down hundreds of trees and numerous wires throughout Northampton County, but affected the slate belt region in the upper part of the county the hardest. Upper Mount Bethel Township had the worst reported damage. In the township, the damaging winds knocked a mobile home off its foundation on Lake Minsi Drive, damaged another home to the point that might make it uninhabitable. Garages, porches, gazeboes and sheds were either blown over or damaged by fallen trees. Many shingles were blown off roofs. About 10 roadways were closed in the township. Sections of Creek Road, Lake Minsi Drive, Blue Mountain Drive, Gallery Lane, Fox Gap Road and Turkey Ridge suffered the most damage and many were closed the longest.|Elsewhere in the county in Portland Borough, many huge trees were knocked down. One downed tree badly damaged three prized vehicles kept in one garage. Two uprooted trees were leaning on another home. In Bangor Borough, two trees fell onto and damaged a home. In Bethlehem Township, a downed tree damaged a pick-up truck. A wind gust to 62 mph was measured in Lehigh Township.|About 13,000 homes and businesses lost power throughout the county; all were restored on the 3rd. |

A wind advisory was issued for most of the afternoon and evening on the 28th. Strong winds occurred in association with an area of low pressure moving across the region. Top gusts in PA were 54 mph in Mount Pocono, 46 mph in Alpha, and 45 mph in Wilson Borough. Isolated power outages were reported across Eastern PA as well.

Gusty northwest winds caused power outages in Lower Nazareth Township on the 2nd and included several department stores and a supermarket in the Northampton Crossings Shopping Center. About 760 homes and businesses lost power; most of the homes were in the Fox Run Development. Most of the outages lasted less than four hours and all power was restored by 930 a.m. EDT that morning. The strong northwest winds were caused by the pressure difference between an intensifying low pressure system that was moving through the Saint Lawrence River Valley and a high pressure system building east from the Upper Mississippi Valley. The peak wind gust for the day at the Lehigh Valley International Airport was 38 mph.

An upper air disturbance and a surface trof preceding a cold front produced severe thunderstorm across Eastern Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania Power and Light reported about 10,000 of its customers in the Lehigh Valley and the northern Philadelphia suburbs in Montgomery and Bucks Counties lost power. All power was restored by 3 p.m. EDT on the 28th.

A severe thunderstorms knocked over several trees and wires in Bath Borough and Plainfield, Nazareth, Upper Nazareth and Bushkill Townships. About 4,630 Pennsylvania Power and Light and Metropolitan Edison customers lost power with the greatest concentration of outages in Nazareth. All power was restored by the morning of the 4th.

A squall line of severe thunderstorms tore down several trees and wires and caused power outages mainly in the southern part of Northampton County.

Trees and power lines were knocked down by a severe thunderstorm in Moore Township.

A severe thunderstorm knocked down a few trees and power lines in Forks Township.

At about 12:30 AM on June 22nd, lightning struck a tree 20 feet from a home at 3425 Farmersville Road in Bethlehem Township. The lightning appeared to travel through the tree roots and up one of the homes rain gutters. No fire resulted, however the power was completely knocked out to the home and a hole was punched in the side of the homes attic. The family was displaced as a result of the lightning strike, however there were no injuries reported.

The Glendon substation took a lightning hit around 5:45 PM EDT on June 19th. This was the suspected reason for the numerous power outages, including 10,000 customers in Easton and Palmer Township. At 9:00 PM EDT, about 3,000 customers were still without power and out of that number, about 1,500 were affected by a utility pole fire at Second and Lehigh Streets in Easton. Nearby, 400 customers in Warren County, New Jersey and 100 customers in Hunterdon County, New Jersey lost power because of the thunderstorms.

A severe thunderstorm or two rumbled their way across a good portion of Northampton County, Pennsylvania during the early evening of June 19th. Trees and power lines were downed in Hanover, Palmer and Lower Mount Bethel Townships between 5:15 PM EDT and 5:30 PM EDT. A tree was knocked over in Easton, which blocked traffic on Route 22 West at Cemetery Cove. Power line fires occurred at Park and North Wood Avenues in Palmer Township, with a transformer fire in the Palmer Park Mall parking lot.

A severe thunderstorm produced strong winds, which downed trees and power lines in Hanover Township, Pennsylvania (Northampton County) between 5:18 PM EDT and 5:35 PM EDT on June 19th.

A severe thunderstorm tore down a few trees and several tree limbs and wires throughout the Lehigh Valley. In Northampton County, the greatest reported wind damage was in Belfast (Plainfield Township). About 2,000 homes and businesses lost power in Northampton County.

A severe thunderstorm knocked over several trees and wires in Nazareth, Mount Bethel, Easton, Palmer and Bethlehem. About 2,700 Metropolitan Edison customers lost power in the county. It took most of the night to completely restore the power.

Two trees, weakened by thunderstorms the evening before, fell down onto wires in Easton. They snapped the wires and caused about 1,100 homes and businesses to lose power including all of Lafayette College. All power was restored by 5 p.m. EDT that day.

Lightning struck a substation in Forks Township and caused about 600 homes and businesses to lose power. Another lightning strike snapped a pole in two in Lower Nazareth Township. About 2,000 homes and businesses lost power in the county. The thunderstorms were prolific cloud-to-ground lightning producers during the afternoon of the 6th. Between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m. EDT about 2,500 cloud-to-ground lightning strikes occurred along the band of thunderstorms from lower Dutchess County, New York southwest through Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

A severe thunderstorm pulled down trees and wires, some large, in Bethlehem. About 6,500 homes and businesses lost power in the Lehigh Valley because of the wind damage and lightning. Ninety percent of the outages were restored by 1030 p.m. EDT on the 17th and all power was restored during the morning of the 18th.

A severe thunderstorm dropped trees, tree limbs and wires in Bethlehem. About 400 homes and businesses lost power because of the downed trees and limbs in the city.

Thunderstorms with frequent lightning caused about 2,500 homes and businesses in Northampton County to lose power. Outages were reported in Bangor, Belfast, Rosato, Moorestown and Wind Gap. A communications tower at the Northampton County Communication Center was also struck by lightning. It caused problems on one communicating frequency. Power was restored in most places by 9 p.m. EDT.

A severe thunderstorm knocked down mature trees in Stockertown Borough and Forks Township. One large tree eight feet in diameter was snapped in Stockertown. A metal roof was also ripped from a house in Stockertown. Power lines were tore down by the trees and resulted in scattered outages.

A severe thunderstorm pulled down about a dozen poles in Upper Mount Bethel Township. Several trees were either split or pulled down in the township and also in Portland Borough. Two roadways were closed because of downed trees. Metropolitan Edison reported about 650 of its customers lost power.

A potent line of severe thunderstorms knocked down numerous trees and wires in Northampton county. Wind damage was reported from the Blue Mountains southeast to Easton. Systemwide, about 176,000 Pennsylvania Power and Light Customers lost power in Pennsylvania because of the line of severe storms, about 12,000 of the outages were in the Poconos and Lehigh Valley. About 3,500 homes and businesses were without power in Easton.

A severe thunderstorm knocked down trees and wires across southern parts of Northampton County hitting locations from Forks Township south through Williams Township and Bethlehem City the hardest. Pennsylvania State Route 611 in Forks Township was closed for about 30 minutes while road crews cleared the downed trees. A portable bathroom was displaced onto a street. In Easton, a utility pole was snapped. In Williams Township, fallen trees closed two roads and damaged one vehicle. Pennsylvania Power and Light reported about 9,700 of its customers lost power because of the storm with the greatest concentration in Northampton County in Bethlehem. Only a third of their customers had power restored by 1030 p.m. EDT that evening and power was completely restored to the last 1,000 on the 4th. Met Ed reported about 3,400 of their customers also lost power in Easton.

A severe thunderstorm knocked over numerous trees and wires across the southern part of Northampton County from Hellertown east through Lower Saucon Township, Bethlehem Township and Easton. A huge tree was knocked down in Easton and blocked one intersection. Pennsylvania Power and Light reported about 7,300 of its customers in its service area (including the Lehigh Valley) lost power because of the thunderstorms. In addition, Metropolitan Edison reported about 2,000 of its customers lost power in Northampton County including Easton.

A severe thunderstorm tore down large tree limbs and power lines in Bath and Nazareth. Pennsylvania Power and Light reported about 7,300 of its customers in its service area (including the Lehigh Valley) lost power because of the thunderstorms. In addition, Metropolitan Edison reported about 2,000 of its customers lost power in Northampton County including Bath and Nazareth.

A severe thunderstorm tore down trees and wires in and around Bethlehem, north of the Lehigh River. In Bethlehem Township, one garage and vehicle were flattened by a downed tree. Pennsylvania Power and Light (PPL) reported about 9,000 of its customers lost power in the Lehigh Valley.

A line of strong to severe thunderstorms moved through Northampton County just after midnight EST on the 10th. The worst reported wind damage occurred in Williams Township where numerous large tree limbs and several whole trees littered the township's roadways. A National Weather Service Cooperative Observer said it was an obstacle course getting to work that morning. Pennsylvania Power and Light reported about 56,000 of its Pennsylvania customers lost power because of the line of thunderstorms. The worst damage though was west of the Poconos and Lehigh Valley.

A severe thunderstorm knocked trees and power lines across a central strip of Northampton County from Northampton Borough east through Nazareth, Tatamy, Forks Township and Easton. Many trees were snagged on power lines. Others blocked roadways. Pennsylvania Power and Light reported about 3,500 homes and businesses lost power in the Lehigh Valley.

A severe thunderstorm knocked over trees and power lines in northeast and central parts of Northampton County. Lightning from the same thunderstorm ignited two house fires. The worst fire occurred to a home in Forks Township. Lightning struck a tree. Burning fragments entered through a basement window and ignited wooden office furniture. Rough terrain and high humidity made it difficult to fight this fire. Twelve firefighters suffered either heat exhaustion and/or smoke inhalation. Damage to the interior of the house was extensive. The second fire started in a Washington Township home. Lightning punched a hole in the roof and started a fire. The fire was extinguished in about 15 minutes.

A severe thunderstorm knocked down several trees and numerous wires, particularly across the southern half of Northampton County. About 8,000 Pennsylvania Power and Light (PPL) customers lost power from the first round of severe thunderstorms in the Lehigh Valley. All power was restored by 9 p.m. EDT on the 2nd.

A severe thunderstorm knocked down about a dozen trees and numerous limbs in Northampton County, mainly across the southern half of the county. The high winds also knocked over a half dozen stands at the Puerto Rican Festival in Lower Saucon Township. About 6,000 homes and businesses lost power in the Lehigh Valley, a quarter of the outages occurred within Bethlehem.

A line of severe thunderstorms knocked down numerous trees and wires mainly across eastern Northampton County. Hardest hit were Stockertown, Upper Mount Bethel and Lower Mount Bethel Townships in the northeast part of the county and in Easton in the southeast part of the county. One tree also fell onto a house in Lehigh Township. GPU Energy and Pennsylvania Power and Light reported about 39,000 customers lost power in their service areas in eastern Pennsylvania including Northampton County. The severe thunderstorms were triggered by a cold front pushing away an unusually warm air mass for early April. The high temperature at the Lehigh Valley International Airport was 83 degrees, a new record for the date.

A squall line of severe thunderstorms knocked down trees and power lines mainly across the southern half of the county. GPU Energy reported about 43,000 homes and businesses lost power in their Pennsylvania and New Jersey Service areas. The hardest hit areas were in Pennsylvania in Easton, the northern side of Bethlehem and Stroudsburg (Monroe County). The primary cause of the outages were trees on power lines. All power was restored by Monday evening the 12th. Lehigh Drive in Easton was closed through Monday the 12th because of downed trees. Farther to the north, fallen trees blocked two roads in Plainfield Township.

A severe thunderstorm knocked down numerous tree limbs across the northern tier of Northampton County. About 9,500 homes and businesses lost power in Northampton and neighboring Monroe County.

Lightning struck and knocked out a transformer on 7th Street in Easton. This cut power to the county courthouse and closed it for the day.

A severe thunderstorm knocked down numerous trees and wires in the East Stroudsburg area. One tree fell on and damaged a home. The same severe thunderstorm knocked down several trees in Northampton County including the Easton area. Local utilities reported about 7,000 homes and businesses lost power in the two county area that evening.

A thunderstorm with frequent cloud to ground lightning struck three homes in Northampton County: one in Nazareth, another on Tatamy Road in Upper Nazareth Township and the third on Main Street in Palmer Township. About 6,000 homes and businesses lost power. No serious injuries were reported.

A severe thunderstorm hammered the southern half of Northampton County with wind gusts that were estimate to reach 100 mph. Wind damage was reported in Bethlehem, Easton, Forks Township, Lower and Upper Nazareth Townships, Nazareth, Palmer Township, Stockertown, Tatamy and Wilson. GPU Energy reported about 36,000 homes and businesses lost power in the Lehigh Valley. There were more than 35 poles knocked down. Pennsylvania Power and Light reported that 11,000 customers lost power in Northampton County. Hardest hit were locations along the U.S. Route 22 corridor. Power was not completely restored until Tuesday night the 16th. Numerous major roadways were closed because of downed trees and wires and included Pennsylvania State Routes 33 and 248. U.S. Route 22 was littered with debris. A few homes suffered major damage and numerous cars were damaged by fallen trees. The only reported injuries occurred because of lightning strikes. A boy was struck by lightning in Nazareth Borough and a 78-year-old man was struck outside his home in Easton. The lightning bolt struck the man in his foot, burned a hole in his sock and went through the back of his thigh. The man escaped with first-degree burns to his foot.In Bethlehem, the thunderstorm winds collapsed a half dozen booths at the Bethlehem Fine Arts Show. A 150-year-old catalpa tree was knocked down. In Lower Nazareth Township wind damage occurred along Georgetown Road as siding was removed from a barn. A billboard sign was spewed across a field. The wind damage continued between Pennsylvania State Route 946 and Newburg Road east to Pennsylvania State Route 248. Some of the worst wind damage occurred along Georgetown and Blossom Hill Roads in Upper Nazareth Townships. The back of one house collapsed on Blossom Hill Road. A large oak tree destroyed the family room of another house on Georgetown Road. In Nazareth Borough, dozens of roads were closed because of downed poles, transformers and trees. The worst damage was around the Moravian Hall Square Retirement Center. In Palmer Township, a home under construction collapsed; another home was severely damaged.