Slideshow: Severe Storms Strike Delaware

Severe storms swept across central and southern Delaware Saturday night, downing trees and causing outages across Delaware Electric Cooperative’s Service territory. Around 11:30 p.m. Saturday night, the National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Kent and Sussex Counties. Wind gusts over 60 mph were reported, along with widespread reports of hail across the state. About 1,500 members lost power as the strong storms moved across the region.

Co-op crews quickly responded, and by 3 a.m. on Sunday, linemen had restored power to most of the members who lost electrical service due to the storms. However, very strong winds arrived as the cold front pushed through and hundreds of additional power outages were reported throughout the day on Sunday.

Sixty mph winds knocked trees and branches onto power lines. Winds were so strong the National Weather Service was forced to issue a high wind warning.

By 7 p.m., nearly all power had been restored and crews were able to go home and take a much needed break.

According to Delaware Electric Cooperative’s President and CEO Bill Andrew, “We would like to thank our hardworking and dedicated employees for their many long hours of work this weekend. We’d also like to thank our members for their patience as crews worked to remove trees from the lines and fix damaged equipment.”

And, finally, some good news. Forecasters say there is no chance for severe weather in Delaware over the next few days. Below a slideshow of photos crews snapped during the restoration process.