CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Power outage numbers were at less than 500 early Friday morning in West Virginia following a busy two days for power restoration crews.
Appalachian Power reported just 275 customers still without service at 3 a.m. Friday while Mon Power and Potomac Edison reported just 194 customers still left to bring back on line.
The utilities reported thousands of outages as strong winds began to move through the Mountain State Wednesday afternoon. At one point, Appalachian Power reported 25,000 customers without service system wide.
Appalachian Power credited its workers for their quick response in information released Thursday evening.
“On this holiday set aside to give thanks, we wish to do just that. We are thankful for our employees, who always stand ready to respond in time of need. We are thankful for the more than 300 workers from outside areas affected by wind damage, who set aside their holiday plans to help our local employees and contractors restore electric service,” a company statement said. “And we are especially thankful for our customers, many of whom undoubtedly had their Thanksgiving plans altered by a service interruption. We greatly appreciate your patience and understanding.”
Some of the strongest wind gusts reported to the National Weather Service included:
– 67 miles per hour at Snowshoe,
– 60 miles per hour at Romney,
– 58 in Petersburg, Bramwell and Martinsburg.