Power Back For Most Of New Hope-Lambertville Area After Storm

Power crews on both sides of the Delaware River restored service to most residences and businesses by Thursday evening.

Fewer than 10 PECO customers in the New Hope Borough and Solebury remained in the dark.

In the City of Lambertville, power remained out to less than 10 customers, according to Jersey Central Power and Light.

PECO said most remaining customers without service should be back on by Friday.

As heavy rain and strong winds hit the area Wednesday, more than 1,000 customers in the New Hope-Lambertville area were in the dark. Crews worked Wednesday and Thursday to fix local outages.

PECO said in a Thursday statement that the storm “caused extensive damage to electric equipment.”

Winds brought trees and limbs down on trees across Central Bucks County.

PECO said more than 230,000 customers had electric service impacted over the course of the storm, with more than 87 percent of those customers impacted getting power back within a day.

Due to the storm, PECO called up 1,000 additional staff, contractors, and crews from other utility companies to assist in repairs. Crews have been working 12- to 16-hour shifts until power is restored.

Outside crews, according to PECO officials, came in from Maryland, Kentucky, Virginia, Tennessee, New York, and North Carolina.

The storm led to water rescues in Bucks County, road closures, and flooding.

The river was swollen in New Hope Borough and the City of Lambertville, but it did not lead to any severe flooding.

Further downstream in Bristol Borough, the river spilled its banks on Wednesday and Thursday.

Forecasters are calling for more rain and gusty winds Friday and Saturday.

“We are prepared for this event and have enhanced our staffing plans to ensure necessary resources are available to respond for our customers,” PECO said in a statement.

Officials from the utility company advised people to avoid damaged electric equipment and downed power lines, including limbs that came into contact with the lines.