Power Cut to 1,700 When Car Hits Pole

As many as 1,700 PPL customers lost power after a car struck a utility pole Tuesday morning at Mauch Chunk Road and Brown Street.

Update at 5:45 p.m. As many was 1,700 PPL customers lost electrical power Tuesday morning after a car struck a utility pole in the 1800 of Mauch Chunk Road. Power was restored to all but 11 customers by 5:45 p.m., according to PPL. The driver, who was injured, was identified as Gam Le, 33, of Whitehall, according to South Whitehall Township Police. Original story: As many was 1,700 PPL customers lost electrical power Tuesday morning after a car struck a utility pole at Mauch Chunk Road and Brown Street. Officials closed Mauch Chunk Road between Evangate Drive and Scherersville Road, north of Brown Street, shortly after the 5:30 a.m. accident, according to WFMZ. Power was restored to all but 70 customers by 1:30 p.m., according to PPL.

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PPL Says 600 More Workers Added to Storm Restoration Force

PPL adds hundreds more workers to Lehigh Valley crews to try to restore all power by 11 p.m. Sunday.

PPL Electric Utilities says it is pouring more manpower into eastern Pennsylvania for a final push this weekend to repair the devastation left by Hurricane Sandy. Approximately 600 additional line workers, now finished working in other areas of the PPL Electric Utilities service territory, arrived Friday and Saturday to supplement the existing army of repair crews. The additional crews bring the total work force in the eastern part of the state to 2,500. While power is now restored to more than 85 percent of the PPL Electric Utilities customers affected by the massive storm, the utility’s commitment to getting the lights back on as safely and as quickly as possible until the last customer is restored will not waver. “We continue to pull in…

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Community Heroes

Meet George Sverha, Greenawalds Assistant Fire Chief

George Sverha initially volunteered at Greenawalds Fire Co. 30 years ago and is still going strong.

  Name:  George Sverha. Assistant Fire Chief, Greenawalds Fire Co.; also past president and past trustee. Age: 55 Lives: Lisa Lane, South Whitehall Family: Wife, Laura; daughters, Megan, 27, and Cynthia, 16. Job: Employed by PPL for more than 30 years, most recently as a service technician. “I’m the ‘shut-off’ guy, the guy you don’t want to see,” he says, because when he comes knocking at the door, it’s to shut off your electricity. “I also change meters when that needs to be done, and for a while, I worked on the underground wiring.... I used to be a meter reader, but that’s now done online. During storms, like the one we had the day before Halloween last year, I also guide crews who come into the area to help restore power by giving them…

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Storm Knocks Out Power to More Than 1,200 in Township

South Whitehall was hardest hit in the Tuesday evening thunderstorm, with PPL reporting more than 1,200 residential customers without power on Tuesday night.

8 a.m. Update: PPL reports 274 customers still without power Wednesday morning. PPL reported more than 1,200 residential customers in South Whitehall without power Tuesday night, following an evening thunderstorm. Residents posting on South Whitehall Patch's Facebook page said the outages were along Mauch Chunk Road and the Greenawalds section of the township. Power went out about 6 p.m. The outages lasted several hours, but many saw power restored by 11 p.m. As of 11:45 p.m., 350 customers remained without power. The Morning Call reported that temperatures dropped 17 degrees in one hour as the storm rolled in about 6 p.m.

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PPL Preparing for Possible Outages

PPL has repair crews ready in case the expected high winds knock out power.

PPL is preparing for possible power outages that could occur with gusty high winds that are expected late Friday night and Saturday. The company is adding additional personnel overnight and staging repair crews in certain areas. The National Weather Service has issued a wind advisory from now through 7 p.m. Saturday for 20 to 30 mph winds, with gusts up to 40 mph. PPL customers experiencing outages are asked to report them at 1-800-342-5775 (1-800-DIAL PPL) or through the online Outage Center at www.pplelectric.com/outagecenter. When prompted, customers reporting by phone should press 1 for "Power Problem." Through a new mobile website, customers can use their smartphone or other mobile device to report a power outage, check the status of …

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Mountain View

What's Your "War Story" Now That the Storm is Over?

The "Powerless People" have survived. Primitive conditions conjure creativity and perseverance among Lehigh Valley residents.

Here we are facing yet another catastrophic event in the history of the Lehigh Valley. If it’s not earthquakes and hurricanes, it’s an unprecedented October snowfall cutting power to approximately 300,000 customers throughout the region for days. The snow began to fall Saturday morning and continued through the night. As I watched it accumulating on our newly planted trees, I became distressed. For two years we’ve nurtured those maples, cherries, oaks, sweet gums, blueberry and lilac bushes, and one silly storm wasn’t going to take them from me. My kids and husband thought I was losing my mind as I rushed out every couple of hours to "shake the trees." They laughed and teased me, but in the end they called me the “Tree Savior.” I’m happy …

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KitKat

10:53 pm on Thursday, November 3, 2011

Jenae forgot to mention... I was so sorry to hear about your fish. They are a true beauty to watch.   more ›