By Melanie Lekocevic
Capital Region Independent Media
RAVENA-COEYMANS — Hundreds of households in Ravena and Coeymans are still without power following a powerful thunderstorm that struck the area Tuesday afternoon.
Fire crews are also on the scene Tuesday evening clearing downed tree limbs and blocked roads.
According to Central Hudson, nearly 3,000 households lost power after the storm, and by 7:30 p.m. hundreds of homes were restored.
As of 7:30 p.m., there were 494 households in Coeymans and 395 in Ravena that still did not have power. No restoration time has been reported by the utility company but according to a statement, Central Hudson is working to restore power to all homes in its coverage area.
“Central Hudson crews are responding to the emergencies and power outages caused by the recent thunderstorms,” according to the statement. “Our crews will continue to work until the last customer is restored.”
The company urged residents to stay “at least 30 feet away from any downed power lines” and to assume that all downed lines are live and dangerous.
Albany County could see more thunderstorms — some of them potentially powerful — before the night is over, according to the National Weather Service in Albany.
The storm caused multiple downed tree branches. At 7:41 p.m. a Code Red notification announced that “State Route 143, between Aquetuck Road and Deans Mill Road, is closed due to trees blocking the roadway.”
Fire crews are also on the scene of Route 144 in the vicinity of James Drive to clear downed power lines.
The village of Ravena has also seen damage due to the afternoon storm.
“Village crews are out trying to clean as much debris as we can along with the local fire departments,” Mayor Bill Misuraca said in a statement on social media. “We encourage you to call Central Hudson and 911 if you have lines down.”