With power out and heat on the rise, mid-Atlantic states swelter

After strong winds and storms on Friday, residents in Virginia, Maryland, Washington, and West Virginia struggle with massive power outages and hot weather.

By Jessica Gresko,?Associated Press / July 1, 2012

Capitol Hill resident Marcia Salkin clears storm debris from the front of her house, where a falling tree shattered her front windows, in Washington June 30. Wind gusts clocked at speeds of up to 79 mph (127 kph) were reported in and around the U.S. capital, knocking out power to hundreds of thousands of homes in the Washington area.

Jonathan Ernst/REUTERS

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Utility crews untangled downed power lines and tree limbs Sunday, working to get the electricity turned back on for millions of people facing a second day of 100-degree temperatures without modern conveniences like air conditioning and refrigeration.

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On Saturday, many people flocked to places like malls and movie theaters in the hope the lights would be on again when they returned home. Utilities were slowly making progress, but more than 3 million people still had no electricity and could only watch their thermostats climb. It could be several days before all the power outages are restored.

Strong winds from the storms late Friday toppled massive trees onto cars and blocked roads, and officials asked residents not to drive until they could clear debris from the streets. When a hurricane is lumbering their way, state officials have time to get extra personnel in place so they can immediately start on cleanup. That wasn't the case with this storm, known as a derecho ? a straight-line wind storm that sweeps over a large area at high speed.

"Unlike a polite hurricane that gives you three days of warning, this storm gave us all the impact of a hurricane without any of the warning of a hurricane," Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley said.

With the power out, authorities also warned people to be careful when using generators and candles to help light darkened homes.

The bulk of the storm damage was in West Virginia, Washington and the capital's Virginia and Maryland suburbs. At least six of the dead were killed in Virginia, including a 90-year-old woman asleep in her bed when a tree slammed into her home. Two young cousins in New Jersey were killed when a tree fell on their tent while camping. Two were killed in Maryland, one in Ohio, one in Kentucky and one in Washington.

In Washington's northern Virginia suburbs, emergency 911 call centers were out of service; residents were told to call local police and fire departments. Huge trees toppled across streets in the nation's capital, crumpling cars. Cellphone and Internet service was spotty, gas stations shut down and residents were urged to conserve water.

The power outages were especially dangerous because they left the region without air conditioning in an oppressive heat wave. Temperatures soared to highs in the mid-90s Saturday in Baltimore and Washington, a day after readings of up to 104 degrees were reported in the region.

Yet another day of temperatures reaching 100 degrees was forecast for much of the region Sunday. Many started to worry what food they had would spoil and their Monday morning commute.

"If we don't get power tonight, we'll have to throw everything away," Susan Fritz, a mother of three, said about her refrigerator and deep freezer.

Fritz stopped by a library in Bethesda, Md., for her son to complete his online classwork. She said her eldest son was also unable to work as a life guard because the local pool complex had no electricity.

Fritz said she took advantage of electricity at her gym to charge her phone and iPad. She also wondered what traffic would be like when she takes one of her sons to swimming practice Monday.

"They've put out stop signs for a lot of the larger intersections, but some of the other intersections don't have signs. For tomorrow, with rush hour, its going to be a problem," she said. "But life goes on. It's hot, it's an inconvenience, but we'll make it."

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/Q56H9UPgRsg/With-power-out-and-heat-on-the-rise-mid-Atlantic-states-swelter

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