Thousands Lose Power in Concord, Capital Region

UPDATE, 9:30 p.m. According to Concord Police dispatch, Unitil is telling them "it's going to be a while" before power is restored in Concord. The company has three crews out working on the problems. Officers were sent to a home on Shaker Road for a 911 hangup call. According to the first officer who arrived, the residents were trying to call 411 to find a hotel to stay for the night. Currently, there are 2,471 households in Concord, Bow, and surrounding communities without power. PSNH has about 3,000 households without power. 

UPDATE, 8:30 p.m. More people are without power across the region, according to the latest Unitil outage map. Nearly 2,500 customers are without power at this time, mostly centered around the southwestern part of the region. PSNH is reporting that about 6,100 of its customers are without power. 

UPDATE, 7:38 p.m. Nearly all power has been restored to Bow, according to Unitil's outage map. However, more than 1,600 customers remain without power. About 1,200 customers on the western side of the city are without power. About 300 on the northeast side of the city remain without power with about 100 and change near the Chichester line are without power. 

UPDATE, 7:14 p.m. Nearly 2,800 customers in the capital region remain without power at this hour as the last part of the storm moves out of the area. Another 11,000 PSNH customers also don't have power.

UPDATE, 6:22 p.m. Unitil's outages are hovering just below 2,600 customers at this point while crews are working at a few different locations attempting to restore power. PSNH has nearly 11,000 customers without power including 27 percent of Northwood and a handful of outages in Canterbury, Deerfield, Epsom, and Pittsfield. Concord Police were also sent to a hit-and-run accident on Elm Street where a motorist struck a fire hydrant. 

UPDATE, 5:59 p.m. Unitil is reporting more than 2,500 customers without power in the region. Here's a rough breakdown of where: Boscawen: 115; East Concord north of I-393: 260; East Concord along I-393: 70; Loudon, Chichester, Epsom: 130; West End: 500+; Hopkinton: 100+; Concord west of I-89 and Bow: 1,200+. Also, traffic is being re-routed at Shaker Road and Mountain Road, up and around the Hoit Road, until the area is cleared on Mountain Road. 

UPDATE, 5:44 p.m. Fire and rescue teams from around the region are heading to New Hampshire Drive in Webster where lightning has struck a house and started a fire, according to scanner chatter. Unitil is reporting about 2,300 customers without power; PSNH is reporting more than 8,400 customers without power. 

UPDATE, 5:31 p.m. There's a little bit of a lull in the rain right now on the western side of the city. On both side of the city, there are some serious problems, including manhole covers running over. There are also major problems on Mountain Road. The road is reportedly closed just north of Shaker Road, about a quarter of a mile before the golf course, due to power lines down in the area. PSNH is reporting outages in Dunbarton and Deering. Unitil outages are back up to just a few shy of 2,000 customers without power. 

UPDATE, 5:13 p.m. A tree was reported down on Mountain Road with parts of the road closed. Flash flooding is being reported all over the place. Unitil is reporting about 1,700 customers without power at this point in the storm. PSNH is reporting 5,500 customers without power. Please leave notes in the comment section about things happening in your neighborhood. 

UPDATE, 4:41 p.m. The clouds are darkening and the rain is coming down again. However, Unitil is slowing restoring power to the region's residents. About 1,400 customers are without power, scattered in the eastern and western parts of the region. PSNH is reporting more outages in the western part of the state. 

UPDATE, 4:32 p.m. Police have been able to find the two people who were stranded on the Merrimack River in a cornfield just north of Route 4. Unitil is now reporting nearly 2,900 customers without power. PSNH has restored power to most homes in Pembroke. However, 13 percent of Goffstown is now without power, more than 900 customers. 

UPDATE, 4:15 p.m. Unitil is reporting new outages in Boscawen and Canterbury, with PSNH reporting 9 percent of the town of Pembroke and 11 percent of Epsom without power, and are now more than 2,200 households. Weare, New Boston, and Amherst are also without power. Mont Vernon is reporting nearly 60 percent of the town is without power. Penacook Rescue and Boscawen firefighters are also at the scene of two people who are trapped on the island on the Merrimack River off Route 4, according to scanner chatter. 

UPDATE, 4:08 p.m. Outages are now up to nearly 2,200 as the storm is rolling into Chichester, Epsom, and Loudon. More lightning strikes are being reported including outside of the Pierce Manse on Horseshoe Pond Road. 

The first post is below:

More than 2,000 customers are without power at this hour as a summer thunderstorm hit Concord and the capital region with heavy but short downpours, sending trees, limbs, and wires along roadways.

The worst of the damage appears to be the in the southwestern part of the city, according to Unitil and scanner chatter.

Fire and rescue teams have been busy heading out to alarm activations and other alerts on Clinton Street. The West End has also had lights flickering during the storm. 

A three-vehicle crash was reported about 30 minutes ago at the intersection of I-89 and I-93, as the storm first hit. After that, trees were reported down on Clinton Street in Concord, as well as Route 13, Page Road, and Albin Road in Bow. 

At the Page Road incident, trees are down in the road and a Bow Police officer has a cruiser stuck. New Hampshire State Police are also at the scene.

Lightning strikes have been reported outside of the Capitol Center for the Arts on South Main Street and in Loudon Road on White Road Hill Road.

Unitil is also reporting outages in Epsom.

Public Service of New Hampshire is reporting more than 300 customers in Goffstown and 600 customers in Bedford without power, as well as New Boston and Manchester.

The storm is expected to last through 9 p.m. tonight. 

Concord NH Patch will be updating this post with more information as it becomes available.