COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — Utility officials are calling the aftermath of yesterday’s windstorm the most significant blow to the region’s electrical grid in over a decade, as crews work to restore power to hundreds of thousands of customers across Ohio.

Update: 3:10 p.m. – Outage maps for AEP show thousands of customers remain without power as work continues to restore service. PowerOutages.com reports 228,000 are without power in Ohio, including 31,000 in Franklin County.

Update: 1:24 p.m. – With wind gusts peaking at 70 mph, the damage to infrastructure across 61 counties is being described as the worst since the 2012 derecho. The high winds sent trees, heavy limbs, and debris tearing through power lines and snapping utility poles throughout the night.

As of Saturday morning, utility providers reported that electricity has been restored to approximately 80,000 customers. However, with 245,000 still in the dark — including 36,000 in Franklin County — a massive logistical operation is underway.

More than 2,700 personnel are currently in the field conducting damage assessments and providing restoration estimates. Officials confirmed that additional teams from sister companies and national partners are en route to Central Ohio to assist in the recovery.

Update: 12:25 p.m. – American Electric Power (AEP) Ohio crews are working to restore power to thousands of residents Saturday following a line of severe windstorms that swept through the region yesterday.

As of 12:25 p.m., repair efforts are concentrated on the Canal Winchester substation, which sustained significant structural damage during the storm. Utility officials stated that technicians are on-site performing emergency repairs to the high-voltage equipment.

Restoration Timeline

While outages remain scattered across Central Ohio, the utility provided the following updates for the hardest-hit areas:

• Canal Winchester: Most customers in this area are expected to have service restored by early Saturday afternoon.
• Greater Columbus Area: Crews remain deployed across all service territories.
• Final Restoration: Work will continue around the clock until power is returned to every individual household and business.

Original Reporting

More than 350,000 Ohioans are waking up Saturday morning with no power.

As of about 11 a.m. Saturday, the website PowerOutage.com reports that 304,813 are without power.

Franklin County has the largest number of outages — approximately 50,000, followed by Cuyahoga, near Cleveland, with about 43,000.

Click here for the statewide outage map.

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CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) – High winds are leading to weather damage and knocking out power Friday in parts of Northeast Ohio.

According to the 19 First Alert meteorologists, wind gusts this afternoon reached a height of 85 MPH at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport.

Most departures are delayed, while some arriving flights have been diverted. Click here to check your flight status.

Elyria trended just behind with a height of 77 MPH.

WIND DAMAGE

• Cleveland Hopkins International Airport: High winds have caused damage to the roof of a hangar on the airport grounds. There is currently no impact to operations.
• Elyria: Firefighters are responding to a partial roof collapse on Griswold Road

ROAD WARNINGS AND CLOSURES

Here’s what to know about power outages and road closures. This is a developing story and will be updated.

• Ohio Turnpike: Officials have issued a travel ban for some high-profile vehicles for all day Friday
• Lakewood: Detroit Road is closed between Alameda Avenue and Cove Avenue due to a down power line
• North Ridgeville: Otten Road is closed in front of the Sandy Ridge Reservation
• Norwalk: Milan Avenue is closed between Union Street and East League Street for a downed tree branch, transformer and wires
• Avon Lake: State Route 83 is closed from Webber to Walker roads
• Brook Park: Avoid West 130th Street at Brook Park Road due to a downed power line
• Carroll County: Amsterdam Road SW is closed down between Dial and Chalon roads due to lines and trees down
• Vermilion Township: Darrow Road is closed between Poorman and Barnes roads
• Ontario: Avoid the area of State Route 309 and North Lex-Springmill Road due to downed power lines
• Perkins Township: State Route 4 is closed between Strub Road and Perkins Avenue due to downed poles and power lines.

BUSINESS CLOSURES

• Eastlake: Walmart is closed due to power outages

POWER OUTAGES

Cleveland Public Power is reporting widespread power outages. Click here for their outage map.

There are more than 255,000 FirstEnergy customers without power as of 5:10 p.m. Friday across the state.

Here is how current outages break down by county, according to the FirstEnergy outage map.

• Ashland: 3,390
• Ashtabula: 3,263
• Cuyahoga: 102,187
• Erie: 3,649
• Geauga: 11,290
• Huron: 5,231
• Lake: 4,548
• Lorain: 7,213
• Medina: 10,531
• Portage: 9,026
• Richland: 11,238
• Stark: 8,352
• Summit: 27,959
• Wayne: 2,591

If severe weather knocks out your power, you can find contact information below for several Northeast Ohio utility companies.

You can also make reports online for power outages or fallen utility poles at FirstEnergy or AEP Ohio.

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