Oppressive heat gave way to severe storms Friday night.
The National Weather Service had predicted the storms across Ohio could produce large hail and winds over 70 mph. The State Highway Patrol indicated high winds blew over three tractor-trailers on Interstate 75 near Findlay in the Columbus area, but no one was injured.
The Jefferson County 911 Center reported trees and some power lines down, primarily in the southern part of the county.
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KEEPING COOL — Local residents on Friday found one way to cool off despite the heat wave sweeping the area — they enjoyed the cool water at Starvaggi Memorial Pool and Park in Weirton. Temperatures are expected to hover in the low 90s with high humidity for the next few days. -- Jeremy Kins
The 911 Center handled more than 100 calls for nearby Belmont County due to its 911 Center being overwhelmed, according to officials. A telephone outage also contributed to the problem.
American Electric Power of Ohio reported roughly 243,000 customers without power across Ohio Friday evening. More than half of that total occurred in Franklin County alone.
While the immediate area was spared the bulk of the extreme weather, some local residents reported a different story.
A Smithfield resident said she drove home around 7 p.m. through hail nearly the size of a quarter, and a Rayland resident reported winds of 42 mph that blew furniture off of the porch.
High winds twisted a locust tree and snapped large branches in Adena, a resident reported. She said large amounts of water accumulated on the roadway.
Throughout Jefferson and adjoining counties, crews worked through the night clearing trees and power lines from roadways. A call went out for chainsaws and other equipment.
Other efforts went toward pumping water from some basements due to the heavy downpour.
The rain prompted a flash flood warning for parts of the area.
The storm followed a day of near record high temperatures which is expected to continue. Late Friday, a heat advisory was issued for today.
(The Associated Press contributed to this story.)
