Thousands without power as severe storms raced through metro Charlotte on Friday
Severe storms left 13,000 Duke Energy customers without power in areas around uptown Charlotte on Friday, as strong winds toppled trees onto power lines and pea-size hail pelted people, cars and homes.
The storms blew a transformer that sparked fires near St. Julien and Bay streets in Charlotte’s Chantilly neighborhood.
Nearly 10,700 Duke Energy customers in Mecklenburg County were without power at 5 p.m., according to the company outage map. Power wasn’t expected to be restored until after 11 p.m., the company said.
In a severe thunderstorm warning at 2:30 p.m., the National Weather Service warned of gusts potentially reaching 60 mph.
The weather service recorded a 44 mph gust at Charlotte Douglas International Airport, but no higher winds were immediately confirmed in the metro area, NWS meteorologist Ashley Pratt said.
The warning, which included Mint Hill and Derita, ended at 3:30 p.m.
A cold front pushing into the Charlotte area will likely prevent more severe storms from forming later Friday, Pratt said.