Following a fierce storm yesterday evening, Southeast Michigan is grappling with widespread power outages, leaving thousands of residents in the dark and knocking down trees across the region. According to a report from CBS Detroit, as of earlier today, over 40,000 people were affected by the power outages, with DTE Energy citing Oakland County as the most affected area where nearly 25,000 residents are without power, followed by Macomb County's more than 12,000 outages.
The aftermath of the storm has seen emergency teams from DTE Energy scrambling to restore electricity, amidst cautions to residents to maintain a distance of at least 25 feet from downed power lines and to report any disruptions, said the storm alert on DTE Energy's website; the same alert that prompted the residents to stay away from the potential hazards created by the storm, such as downed trees from Ann Arbor to New New Haven, as reported by WXYZ.
In tandem with the power disruptions, the National Weather Service is placing emphasis on the possibility of localized flooding after the recent downpours, noting that the southern parts of the region might witness more thunderstorms through the weekend, with the strongest storms expected in the evenings and winds reaching up to 60 mph as pointed out by CBS Detroit.
Further reports by The Detroit News detailed additional storm damage where numerous trees and wires were knocked down in areas like Shelby Township, coupled with flooding reports in Warren, where the weather service indicated water covering Hayes Road at 12 Mile, also the weather service had previously issued warnings for potentially damaging winds across various communities, warnings that were lifted late Wednesday night but not before leaving their mark on the region.
The extent of the damage and the ongoing restoration efforts continue to evolve, citizens are urged to report outages or downed lines through DTE's available channels, including their mobile app and website, echoing the message from the energy provider to treat all downed lines as live hazards, as mentioned by WXYZ.
