Associated Press Published

Severe Storms Leave Thousands Without Power In West Virginia

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Thousands of customers remained without electricity in West Virginia on Sunday after severe storms swept through the state.

Appalachian Power said on its website that more than 13,000 homes and businesses had no service Sunday in southern West Virginia. More than 3,300 of the customers were in Kanawha County, while there were about 1,800 customers out in Wayne County and about 1,100 in Putnam County.

FirstEnergy said about 5,100 customers were without service, including nearly 1,200 customers in Calhoun County.

The National Weather Service said wind gusts of 56 mph were reported in Huntington and Parkersburg as the storms moved through Saturday.

Record high temperatures were set across the state.

The weather service said Charleston’s high of 80 degrees on Saturday broke the Jan. 11 record of 71 degrees set in 2018, while Huntington’s high of 78 erased the mark of 66 set in 1963.

Records highs also were set in Clarksburg (76 degrees), Elkins (71), and Beckley (69), while Parkersburg tied a 70-year-old mark when it reached 78 degrees.