A strong rainstorm with gusty winds blew through Central Maine on Friday afternoon, knocking down trees and disrupting power to 28,600 homes.

In Lewiston, the storm also knocked over the community Christmas tree in Dufresne Plaza on Lisbon Street. Public Works crews put tape around the fallen tree, and police said they did not know when it would be put back up.

The National Weather Service said Friday’s storm left about an inch of rain across southern and central Maine. 

A wind warning was posted in some coastal counties, and wind advisories were up in interior areas. The weather service reported gusts of up to 50 mph at the height of the storm in the interior part of the state

Central Maine Power Co. said early Saturday that more than 13,000 customers are still without power. That total is down from more than 28,600 outages on Friday. Most of the remaining outages are in Cumberland, York and Lincoln county areas.

Bangor Hydro-Electric Co. reports more than 5,800 outages, with more than 4,000 in Hancock County.

In Androscoggin County, CMP reported 1,267 homes were without power — more than half of them in Durham.

CMP repair crews are getting assistance from Maine contractors providing additional line worker and tree removal crews.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.

filed under: