HARMONY, Pa. — Strong storms caused damage and power outages across Western Pennsylvania on Saturday.
Communities are cleaning up after strong storms moved through the region Saturday, leaving damaged buildings, downed trees and thousands without power.
In Plum, a fallen tree landed on power lines, forcing a road closure and knocking out electricity to about 2,000 customers in the area.
Earlier in the day, residents in Harmony, Butler County, were also dealing with storm damage.
Jim Weppelman said powerful winds tore apart his more than 100-year-old barn and scattered metal debris across his property.
“It ripped it off. Put it here, put it there,” Weppelman said.
Weppelman said he was inside his home watching the weather move in when conditions quickly worsened.
“I was sitting in the dining room, looking at the phone, looking out the window, alright, here comes the rain,” he said.
Moments later, he said, the storm intensified with heavy rain, hail and dark skies.
“I scream to the wife, ‘The roof is coming off the barn. Get over here and let’s get down to the basement,’” Weppelman said.
The storm also damaged one of his antique cars stored inside the barn.
“One hot rod up top and it got damaged pretty good,” he said.
Neighbors in Harmony say the area is no stranger to severe weather, pointing to a deadly and destructive storm that struck the community last April.
Dick Burns said seeing the damage to the historic barn was difficult.
“It’s a shame. That barn is old, and it actually was in pretty good shape before the storm hit,” Burns said.
Both Duquesne Light Co. and FirstEnergy said they increased staffing to quickly respond to outages caused by the storms.
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