Wind storm left thousands of AEP customers in the dark

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

More than 3,000 local AEP customers lost power due to Friday’s wind storm that rolled into northwest Ohio and the extreme wind slowed repairs and restoration efforts. 

According to an AEP spokesperson, across the Van Wert service area,  including Van Wert County and all of Delphos, 3,339 customers lost power at the peak of the storm at 6 p.m. on Friday evening.

“Within 24 hours, AEP Ohio crews had restored power to 97 percent of those customers,” the spokesperson said. “52 customers in the Van Wert service area were without power as of 7 p.m. Saturday. Crews worked as quickly as they safely could to restore power to the remaining customers.”

“The storm that came through Sunday night and Monday morning caused 500 customers to lose power,” they added late Monday afternoon. “Crews have since restored service to all but two of those customers and will continue working until everyone has electricity again.”

AEP said the high winds caused damage to the power grid not seen since the derecho of 2012.

AEP Ohio delivers power to 1.5 million customers across 61 counties in Ohio. At the peak of Friday’s storm, approximately 258,000 customers lost power with the largest numbers being reported in central, northern and eastern parts of the state.

The spokesperson said more than 4,000 AEP Ohio employees and contractors responded — roughly four times AEP’s normal headcount — and worked a collective 147,500 hours as of Monday morning.

The National Weather Service Northern Indiana released information about the strongest wind gusts in Van Wert County on Friday.

• Middle Point: 77 miles per hour
• Van Wert: 66 miles per hour
• Convoy: 54 miles per hour

The sustained strong winds prompted the National Weather Service to issue a rare Blowing Dust Advisory for a handful of counties, including Van Wert County. Van Wert County EMA Director Rick McCoy reported visibility was down to a quarter mile or less due to blowing dust.

Along with calls of overturned semi-trucks, numerous downed trees, utility poles and power lines, local authorities were dispatched to at least two fire calls on Friday – on on Goodwin Rd. in York Township for smoke in the attic and a barn fire along Van Wert Auglaize County Line Rd.

The City of Van Wert has scheduled a special brush pickup for next week. Brush should be placed by the curb by 7 a.m. Monday, March 23.