WILKES-BARRE, Pa. — Utility poles were scattered all over South Main Street like fallen dominos along the South Main Plaza.
The scene is what was left behind after a violent thunderstorm blew through.
PPL believes that 12 to 15 utility poles were brought down, causing emergency crews to scramble to the scene due to those torn wires on the ground still being live.
"This was an area where there was the worst damage. Several telephone poles down, serious issue with power in the area being energized,” said Wilkes-Barre Bureau of Fire Chief Jay Delaney.
Matthew Taleroski and Dean Ambosie are juniors at Wilkes University; they lost power.
"All of a sudden, the power went off, so me and my roommate just decided to check it out, see how it is because this really doesn't happen around Wilkes,” said Taleroski.
"I was in lab and we got hit by the storm. We heard a lot of noises, power went out and there's no power on campus right now,” said Ambosie.
The fire chief says his crews had to rescue a woman who was trapped inside a car. That car had live wires on top of it, keeping the woman there. PPL said it cut power to those lines so firefighters could get her out.
While South Main was the hardest-hit area, the fire department is asking PPL to focus on getting power back on at Valley View Terrace first where there are more than 150 people living there who rely heavily on their electricity.
"People are on oxygen there. There are a lot of concerns, but PPL is really working hard here to get the power returned here and more importantly to get the power to that high rise,” said Delaney.
PPL said it is sending additional crews from other areas to help restore power here in the city.
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