CLEVELAND, Ohio — More than 73,500 FirstEnergy Corp. customers in Cuyahoga County were without power Saturday morning following storms that hit northeast Ohio four days ago.
These customers represented 14% of the utility’s 530,862 customers in the county.
Residents across the region were without power on Tuesday as strong winds and heavy rains battered the Cleveland metropolitan area. Four tornadoes touched down, damaging power lines, homes and businesses.
In Ohio, about 103,790 FirstEnergy customers were without power on Saturday. The Akron utility also reported that many residents may not be able to turn on their lights until Wednesday.
The number of those affected has dropped sharply since Friday, when 194,383 FirstEnergy customers were without power in the state. More than 145,000 of them lived in Cuyahoga County.
On Saturday, residents of Cleveland and its West Side suburbs made up the majority of those without power. In Cleveland, 31,3952, or 31%, of the city’s FirstEnergy customers were without service. In Lakewood, 8,061, or 29%, of the city’s utility customers were without service.
In Rocky River, 2,900 households were without power, representing 28% of the utility’s customers.
Communities east of Cuyahoga County were also hard hit Saturday. More than 15,304 customers in Lake County were without power Saturday. Those residents made up 15% of the utility’s customers, while in Geauga, 8,737, or 22% of FirstEnergy customers, were without power Saturday.
In Troy Township, Geauga County, five people were treated Friday night after carbon monoxide leaked into a nursing home, partially caused by Tuesday’s storms.
Township Fire Chief Nicholas Bushek said the generators vented inside the Inn at The Pines Assisted Living and Memory Care Center. He said high levels of the gas were detected on the ground floor, making several residents sick.
On Saturday, Cleveland Public Power reported that power had been restored to nearly 90% of the 34,000 customers who lost power, leaving only 4,300 customers still affected.
“We are making steady progress,” said Shelley Shockley, an agency spokeswoman.
