3:30pm update
150,000 thousand homes and businesses on Cape Cod remained without power at 3pm Tuesday, following a punishing storm that brought 90+ mph wind gusts overnight.
On Martha’s Vineyard that number was about 7,000 thousand, and 55,000 continued without power on the South Coast.
Eversource says it could be several days before power is fully restored. As high winds continued through the day, utility crews, dispatched from a staging area at the Cape Cod Mall in Hyannis, focused on assessing damage and helping towns clear roads.
On the Outer Cape, Provincetown and Truro were entirely without power. Eversource reported that a sole source circuit went down in the storm, causing that outage.
Provincetown's Veterans Memorial Community Center has been opened as a charging station. Dennis police also opened a charging center for phones and other devices at the police station.
For Many, a Day Without School, Work
Long lines formed at doughnut shop drive-throughs as people without power in their homes went out for something to eat.
Gas stations were also very busy, as people topped off their gas tanks or purchased gas for generators.
Sections of Route 28 in Marstons Mills and Mashpee were closed for a time due to downed power lines and trees.
Many traffic signals remain out of service. Drivers should use extra caution at intersections.
Cape Cod Healthcare announced that aside from their main hospitals, their other facilities were closed today. That includes urgent care facilities.
Tobey Hospital in Wareham was currently running on generator power. Some of the hospital’s clinical services were being rescheduled, or relocated to other facilities.
Also on the Southcoast, a small parked plane was lifted off the ground by a strong gust of wind, depositing the craft onto a roadway outside the airport. No injuries were reported.
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6am
Many are waking up without power as a storm hammers the region. Strong winds have left over 400,000 Massachusetts residents without power due to sustained high winds. Eversource is reporting that when wind gusts reach hazardous strength they're not able to put buckets in the air, making power restoration slow-going for many residents.
According to the National Weather Service, the window for strongest winds and damage will continue along the immediate coast until 7-8 AM with somewhat lesser winds farther inland. Winds will slowly diminish as the day goes on, but it will remain windy.
The weather has impacted schools: All schools on Cape Cod are closed according to the Barnstable County Regional Emergency Planning Committee. Hazardous road conditions, sustained high winds and power outages make it unsafe for children to get to school.
The highest wind gust for the storm so far was 94 mph in Edgartown at the Chappy Ferry dock at 4:31 AM. Other high gusts as of 4:30 AM include:
- 88 mph Vineyard Haven
- 87 mph Scituate
- 84 mph Duxbury
- 83 mph Wellfleet
- 82 mph Dennis
- 80 mph Truro
The Steamship Authority has announced that all services have been suspended until further notice as high winds continue to hit the region. "Travel on the roads is extremely dangerous so please do not attempt to come to our terminals."
Stay tuned to CAI as we continue to monitor the damage from this storm.
