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NJ Power Grid Fails Under Storm Siege
19 Jul
Summary
- Over 30,700 customers lost power due to severe thunderstorms.
- Sussex County experienced the most significant impact with over 35% affected.
- Severe weather threats include wind gusts up to 60 mph and flash flooding.
Tens of thousands of homes and businesses in New Jersey were left without power on Saturday due to strong thunderstorms. As of 12:15 p.m., NJ.com's Power Outage Tracker reported over 30,700 customers in the dark.
JCP&L reported the vast majority of these outages, with 29,836 customers affected. Sussex County bore the brunt, experiencing over 20,754 outages, which represented more than 35% of JCP&L customers in that area. Morris County followed with 7,314 outages, and Passaic County had 1,774.
Other utility companies also reported disruptions, with PSE&G noting 708 outages and Atlantic City Electric reporting 107. These power failures occurred amidst a severe weather threat encompassing wind gusts up to 60 mph, flash flooding, frequent lightning, and isolated tornado potential.
The National Weather Service issued severe thunderstorm warnings for several parts of the state. A flash flood warning was in effect for five northern New Jersey counties due to heavy rainfall. Additional thunderstorms are anticipated throughout Saturday and into the evening, with the possibility of 2 to 3 inches of rain in short periods.
