Weather

Dominion: More Than 14,000 Arlingtonians Still Without Power

By Bridget Reed Morawski
1/5

(Updated at 7:35 p.m.) Friday’s wind storm has taken a toll on Arlington, sending trees toppling onto cars, houses and across roads, and knocking out power to tens of thousands.

As of 7:30 p.m., Dominion reported 14,663 customers without power in Arlington. An hour earlier, it appeared that the numbers were finally dropping, but thanks to continued strong winds it has, in fact, gone up.

A Dominion outage map showed that a large swath of residential North Arlington and a significant portion of the Fairlington neighborhood was without power as the sun started to set.

Across the D.C. region, nearly 600,000 were in the dark as of early evening.

Arlington County Police say they’ve responded to more than 250 calls for service since this morning, including 66 calls for trees down.

To help with the cleanup, which is expected to take at least a few days, Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam has declared a state of emergency.

“The order is designed to help Virginia mitigate any damage caused by high winds and to streamline the process that the Commonwealth uses to provide assistance to communities impacted,” the governor’s office said in a statement.

A High Wind Warning remains in effect until 6 a.m. Gusty winds are expected to continue overnight as the nor’easter makes its way north and pummels New England.

The National Weather Service says it clocked a wind gust of 71 miles per hour at Dulles International Airport earlier today. NWS is urging those in the D.C. area to remain vigilant as the winds continue to gust.

Widespread power outages are occurring. Travel is dangerous, especially for high profile vehicles, and motorists need to be aware of rapidly changing road conditions due to the potential of downed trees and power lines. Pedestrians will face very hazardous conditions, and need to be aware of wind-borne projectiles. People should avoid being outside in forested areas and around trees and branches. If possible, remain in the lower levels of your homes during the windstorm, and avoid windows. If you use a portable generator, follow manufacturer’s instructions and do not use inside homes, garages, or apartments.

More local weather impacts via social media, after the jump.

https://twitter.com/ArlingtonVaFD/status/969703660052762625