Storm knocks down wires, branches across Washtenaw County
West Liberty Street was closed between South Seventh Street and Eberwhite Boulevard in Ann Arbor due to downed trees after Tuesday night's storm.
Cindy Heflin | AnnArbor.com
Editor's note: This article has been corrected to note that a power outage in Ypsilanti Township was not related to the storm.
A brief but fierce thunderstorm had Washtenaw County fire crews responding to downed tree branches and electrical wires Tuesday evening, officials said.
Ann Arbor police said at 6 p.m. they were dispatched to the intersection of Liberty and Seventh for downed branches in the road.
West Liberty Street was reportedly closed between South Seventh Street and Eberwhite Boulevard around 6:30 p.m. At 6:50 p.m., Ann Arbor police said Liberty was still closed. The issue was expected to be resolved Tuesday night, police said.
Police also said a home on Glendale Drive sustained damage when it was crushed by a tree that fell on it just before 6 p.m.
The Ypsilanti Fire Department was responding around the same time to wires down on garages and a vehicle near North Congress Street, officials confirmed.
Officials with the Dexter Area Fire Department said that area did not get hit as bad as Ann Arbor and that there were wires down here and there, but nothing major.
Ann Arbor Township Fire Department did not get called out on any runs due to the storm, neither did Pittsfield Township.
Power was knocked out earlier in the day to an area of Ypsilanti Township, but that was not related to the storm. DTE Energy spokesman Alejandro Bodipo-Memba said about half of about 1,500 customers affected had their power restored by 6 p.m. The rest were expected to have it back by 7 p.m.
John Counts covers cops and courts for AnnArbor.com. He can be reached at johncounts@annarbor.com or you can follow him on Twitter.
Comments
Bertha Venation
Wed, Jul 10, 2013 : 7:20 p.m.
I was on my way into Sidetrack for a burger when the downpour hit. I was drenched from head to toe. I went in the door. Everyone just staired at me... so I stood there and announced: "I'm here for the wet tee-shirt contest."
Flip
Wed, Jul 10, 2013 : 2:09 p.m.
Power was restored to the Liberty area around 11 PM last night and the road was re-opened by midnight. I'm actually impressed at how much they got done before the crews left. There were probably 6 DTE trucks on the scene when I was allowed back into my house around 10:30 PM. If you walk down the street, you can see burn marks where the lines hit the ground. I'm just thankful that the tree didn't fall on a car or a pedestrian, since Liberty is pretty busy at that time of day. On a less positive note, no one was able to tell me when it was safe to go back to my house. I called DTE and the Ann Arbor police. The suggestion from AAPD was to "drive by and see." I'm surprised that they couldn't even tell me if the road was closed since there were still police on the scene when I took their advice and drove by. You would think that they would know something like that.
hmsp
Wed, Jul 10, 2013 : 1:59 p.m.
I remember when the cops were locals, who knew the town and its people...
hmsp
Wed, Jul 10, 2013 : 1:45 p.m.
My favorite moment was when the AAPD officer blocked off W-bound access to Liberty, and N-bound access to 8th, and detoured traffic S on 8th... The dead-end section of 8th! That added a half-hour or so to some peoples' commute!
Salbolal
Wed, Jul 10, 2013 : 1:34 p.m.
Every time I drive down Dixboro Road between Geddes and Plymouth, I look at the dead trees and limbs over the road and hope this isn't the time they fall...who is responsible for clearing these (not in the City)?
Linda Diane Feldt
Wed, Jul 10, 2013 : 2:04 a.m.
The tree came down across Liberty at Eberwhite right about 5:30 pm. The road was blocked at that point, both lanes. Based on the sirens I heard, the police arrived on the scene by 5:40. There was a small fire from a downed power line the neighbors told me, that was closer to 8th St. A little after 6 I saw another shower of sparks and smoke and a small fire on the ground, with lots of smoke, which was left to burn, even after DTE arrived. The road was still blocked when I drove by 1/2 hour ago. So the timing is off on this story, and the road was closed to cars, pedestrians and bicycles because of the downed wire.
other
Wed, Jul 10, 2013 : 2:58 a.m.
thanks for the reporting, Linda!
David Cahill
Wed, Jul 10, 2013 : 1:48 a.m.
What is meant by "sustained damage when it was crushed by a tree that fell on it"? Was the house totally crushed? Or just damaged? Is it still livable?
Jeff Renner
Wed, Jul 10, 2013 : 1:46 a.m.
I measured 1.30 " in our rain gauge off Dexter-Ann Arbor rd. in Scio Twp., yet a personal weather station 1/2 mile away measured only 0.52". http://www.wunderground.com/weatherstation/WXDailyHistory.asp?ID=KMIANNAR24&day=09&month=07&year=2013
leaguebus
Wed, Jul 10, 2013 : 1:08 a.m.
I live on the northwest side and I didn't see any wind, just a ton of rain.
Paul
Wed, Jul 10, 2013 : 1:05 a.m.
Lol, put the power lines back up so another storm can not them back down, ha ha. When is the USA going to upgrade its power grid and bury the power lines like the European countries have down ? That is right ,the USA can't afford it, too busy spending billions overseas and over on Mars to invest in its homeland.
joejoeblow
Tue, Jul 9, 2013 : 11:44 p.m.
So, um, how much rain did we get?
Paul
Wed, Jul 10, 2013 : 1:08 a.m.
Just your typical summer storm, just think if a tornado were to strike.
Justanotherresident
Tue, Jul 9, 2013 : 11:34 p.m.
Not quite, Mr. Bodipo-Memba. AAPD at the scene telling neighbors it may not be until Wednesday morning.