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Thursday, March 28, 2024

Severe storms cause power outages in west Gainesville

<p>Students rush to class as torrential rainfall and thunderstorms cast gray clouds over Gainesville.</p>

Students rush to class as torrential rainfall and thunderstorms cast gray clouds over Gainesville.

7:25 p.m. Monday Update:

As of 7:25 p.m., 117 Gainesville Regional Utilities customers have reported power outages primarily in the northwest side of Gainesville, north of West Newberry Road and west of Main Street, as well as the south of Gainesville, south of West University Avenue.

Western Alachua County, including Gainesville, is under a flood advisory until 8 p.m. Monday, according to the National Weather Service.

Tuesday morning and early afternoon will see the greatest risk for severe weather, including strong wind gusts, hail and isolated tornadoes, said meteorologist Ben Nelson with the National Weather Service in Jacksonville. Nelson said Gainesville has already accumulated two inches of rain and can expect another one to two more inches until Tuesday.

Areas west of Interstate 75, including downtown Gainesville, can expect localized flooding Monday evening, Nelson said.

Residents could see strong winds and thunderstorms Tuesday. Winds could reach up to 60 miles per hour, damaging trees and downing powerlines, Nelson said.

Original Story:

About 2,000 Gainesville Regional Utilities customers lost power as a severe thunderstorm passed through west Gainesville early Monday morning.

GRU spokesperson Sarah Barnes said about 1,800 customers had their power restored by 10 a.m. GRU crews were expected to restore power to the remaining customers by 4 p.m. Monday. Outages were in the northwest side of Gainesville, south of Northwest 39th Avenue, as well as north of West University Avenue, between Northwest 34th Street and Interstate 75, according to GRU’s online power outage map.

The two main outages were reported in the area surrounding Tower Road and the area west of 71st Street, Barnes said.

“Sit tight, our crews our aware and on the way,” Barnes said.

The storm brought down mostly trees and some power lines. The outages affected both residential and commercial areas, she said.

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Customers should not try to clear fallen branches and debris near down power lines, Barnes said.

Gainesville can expect to be hit by severe thunderstorms twice Monday evening and Tuesday morning through the afternoon, said meteorologist Larry Struble with the National Weather Service in Jacksonville. Strong storm winds are likely to cause more power outages, he said.

However, the harsh weather will clear by Wednesday, which will have a high of 70 degrees.

“Stay weather aware today and right through Tuesday,” Struble said.

Contact Amanda Rosa at arosa@alligator.org and follow her on Twitter @AmandaNicRosa.

Students rush to class as torrential rainfall and thunderstorms cast gray clouds over Gainesville.

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