Thousands in Westmoreland, Fayette could remain in dark until late Monday

Mar. 5—Thousands still remained without power in Westmoreland and Fayette counties Sunday in the wake of high winds that toppled trees and damaged structures Friday and Saturday.

West Penn Power reported close to 2,580 customer outages in Westmoreland County and about 865 in Fayette County around 7 p.m. Sunday. The utility estimated most of those affected should not expect to have power restored until late Monday.

There were more than 440 customers still without electricity in Ligonier Township, about 135 in Mt. Pleasant Township and about 260 in Donegal Township.

In Fayette County, there were 164 reported outages in Bullskin Township, close to 140 in Saltlick Township and about 50 in Connellsville.

The utility's parent company, First Energy, reported about 4,000 total outages across the region, down from 9,000 earlier in the day.

On Saturday, there were nearly 30,000 customers who were without power.

Latrobe musical postponed

A power outage Friday night at Greater Latrobe Senior High caused a cancellation of the school's weekend performances of the musical "Pippin." The district indicated that the show will be rescheduled.

"A few minutes before the curtain came up on 'Pippin' Friday night, the power went out at the high school," said school district Superintendent Mike Porembka.

Five trees on the high school campus fell, affecting seven utility poles serving the senior high and adjoining junior high, Porembka said. He said West Penn Power crews completed repairs but he supported the decision by the musical's directors to cancel remaining shows on Saturday and Sunday because of the uncertainty about additional potential outages.

He said the outage also affected computer servers that support all the district's schools but that technicians completed a "work-around" and there are no disruptions lingering.

"We are going to have classes Monday," he said.

West Penn Power spokesman Josh Duke said the utility had crews working 16-hour shifts to make repairs, including additional contracted workers and personnel reassigned from sister utilities.

He said West Penn expects to have power restored to all customers by late Monday night.

"We do hope it's sooner," he said.

He said sustained high winds of more than 30 to 40 mph initially prevented crews from ascending safely on bucket trucks to work on damaged lines.

"The amount of tree damage and forestry damage and downed power lines made it difficult to access damaged sites," Duke said. "There were some very wet off-road conditions."

The National Weather Service in Moon Township reported wind gusts of 60 mph just before 8 p.m. Friday at Arnold Palmer Regional Airport in Unity and 52 mph at about 2:45 a.m. Saturday at Allegheny County Airport. The strong winds subsided at about 1 p.m. Saturday.

Damage to structures was reported in both counties. In Westmoreland, at least five homes in Unity were damaged by fallen trees, and a roof was blown off a structure in Mt. Pleasant Township, officials said.

A gas station in Connellsville was among buildings damaged in Fayette County.

National Weather Service meteorologist Lee Hendricks said conditions should remain relatively calm for the remainder of the week ahead.

Peak gusts of just 25 mph are possible Tuesday afternoon but the winds should die down soon after sunset that day, he said.

Conditions also will cool down somewhat temperature-wise, according to Hendricks.

"For the rest of the week, at best, we'll have highs in the mid- to upper-40s," he said.

Several roads remained closed to traffic Sunday as crews worked to clear away debris, according to PennDOT.

They include:

Westmoreland County

—Route 982 in Mount Pleasant Township: from Alice Road to Moccasin Hollow Road due to downed trees and wires.

—Route 982 in Mount Pleasant Township: from Tall Pine Drive to Route 130 due to downed trees and wires.

—Nature Run Road in Ligonier Township: from Hall Road to Kissell Springs Road due to downed trees and wires.

—Ankney Hill Road/Clay Pike Road in Mount Pleasant Township: from Clay Pike Road/Kecksburg Road to Sawmill Road due to downed trees.

—Route 259 in Ligonier Township from McCurdy Trail to Austraw Road due to downed trees and wires.

—Route 271 in Ligonier Township from Turkey Inn Road to Mill Road due to downed trees and wires.

—Ross Mountain Park Road from Umheys Road in Ligonier Township to Mountain View Road in Fairfield Township due to downed trees and wires.

Fayette County

—Kreinbrook Road in Bullskin Township: from Ohler Road to Rydle Road due to downed trees and wires.

—Chalk Hill Ohiopyle Road in Wharton Township: from Old Mill Road to Greenbrier Road due to downed trees and wires.

—Wymps Gap Road: in Springhill Township from the West Virginia state line to Spring Hill Furnace Road due to downed trees and wires.

Jeff Himler is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jeff by email at jhimler@triblive.com or via Twitter .