Record rainfall and damaging winds Thursday night into Friday morning have left nearly 8,000 homes and businesses in the Pittsburgh region without power.
The 1.97 inches of rain that drenched the region set a daily record, according to the National Weather Service.
The previous record for Oct. 31 was set in 1899 when 1.22 inches of rain fell, the weather service reported. Much of the rain fell between 2 and 5 p.m., which saturated the ground and caused streams and creeks to swell.
Wind gusts as high as 52 mph dropped trees onto power lines and roadways throughout the region, the weather service reported.
As of 3:15 p.m., more than 600 Duquesne Light customers remain without power. The utility reported that service was restored overnight to about 9,000 customers who lost power.
West Penn Power’s parent company, First Energy, reported more than 185 customers in Westmoreland County and more than 170 in Washington County are still without power at 3:20 p.m. About 170 First Energy customers in Allegheny County were without power.
Friday’s forecast in the Pittsburgh area calls for clouds through mid-morning, then gradual clearing, with a high near 42. Winds gusts could get as high as 28 mph. In the Greensburg area, scattered flurries are called for before 8 a.m., with clouds through mid-morning, then a gradual clearing, with a high near 41.
