Storms topple trees and power lines in Midcoast

A tree toppled in the storm on Whitehouse Crossing Road in Topsham Contributed

A powerful line of storms that roared across the Midcoast Monday evening ripped down power lines, snapped trees, blocked roads and damaged homes.

More than 17,000 Central Maine Power customers lost power as the storms moved through. As of 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, power had been restored to all but five CMP customers.

Jesse Road and Ivanhoe Drive residents in Topsham experienced significant property damage. The Topsham Fire and Rescue Deputy Chief Gerry Pineau said firefighters responded to multiple calls of downed power lines, outages and trees down.

“We responded to 29 calls since yesterday related to the storm. Some homes received significant damage from downed trees, but there have been no injuries reported,” said Pineau. “We have activated American Cross and notified the Sagadahoc County emergency management services as soon as the incident happened.”

Central Maine Power crews are working to de-energize downed lines and restore power to the affected areas.

“As of 5:30 a.m., 170 customers in Topsham were still in the dark. The CMP crews are currently working on Andrea Street, Jesse Street, Stowaway Road, and Old Tavern Road to remove trees and downed power lines,” said Pineau.

A resident of a neighborhood on Whitehouse Crossing Road said they considered themselves lucky despite the damage caused by falling trees.

“There was no permanent damage done to our property,” said Gail Weather, a resident of Whitehouse Crossing Road in Topsham. “Nearby trees snapped, but the power was restored around 11:30 p.m.”