The powerful storm moved through Philadelphia and its suburbs in mid-afternoon Saturday, knocking down trees, branches and power lines.
PECO spokesman Ben Armstrong said approximately 70,000 customers remained without power after 9 p.m. Saturday, down from a high of 85,000. He said all the outages were in Bucks and Montgomery counties, and that it might take until Monday to restore power to all customers.
Amtrak suspended service along the Northeast Corridor between New York and Philadelphia on Saturday night because of overhead wire and power problems.
In the parking lot of a Giant supermarket in New Hope, in Bucks County, a shopping cart shelter was blown onto its side. In Philadelphia, a few streets were reported closed due to water in low-lying areas.
Flood watches went into effect Saturday for areas of central and eastern Pennsylvania. Flood warnings were issued Saturday afternoon for some creeks in the Philadelphia area.
Before the gusty storm hit, potential flooding was the main concern.
But officials revised some of their river crest projections in western Pennsylvania downward Saturday as rainfall appeared to be less than was projected.
The National Weather Service issued flood warnings for Fayette, Westmoreland, Somerset, Franklin, Bedford, Fulton and Cambria counties in western Pennsylvania, for Huntington, Adams and Blair counties in central Pennsylvania, Tioga and Bradford counties in northern Pennsylvania and Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, Bucks and Philadelphia counties.
A state of emergency was in effect in Pittsburgh, but flooding was only reported in low-lying areas such as the Mon Wharf and at Point State Park, where the Monongahela and Allegheny Rivers meet to form the Ohio River. Moderate flooding could still occur when the river crested Sunday, Allegheny County 911 shift commander Gary Sawicki said.
Fears that the Youghiogheny River might flood Connellsville also appeared to ease Saturday afternoon, although water spilled into a riverfront park and other low-lying areas. Guy Napolillo, 911 coordinator at the Fayette County Emergency Management Agency, said the heavier part of the storm bypassed the area and soaked portions of West Virginia instead.
"We dodged a bullet," Napolillo said. "It didn't affect our snowpack. We didn't get all the water we anticipated. ... If things hold as they are and we don't get additional rain, we'll continue to be pretty stable."
Forecasters canceled flood watches for some areas of the Ohio, Monongahela, Allegheny and Beaver rivers in Venango, Armstrong, Clarion, Jefferson and Beaver counties, saying projected rain totals no longer appeared to threaten serious problems.
The borough of Yardley notified residents that the Delaware River was expected to rise high enough Sunday morning to make one avenue impassable, so vehicles should be relocated and school buses Monday morning might have to be rerouted.
