FEMA is authorized to identify, mobilize, and provide equipment and resources necessary to deal with the emergency.
Governor John Kasich's communications department confirmed the federal declaration in a tweet Saturday night.
From @OHPressSec: "Feds just approved the Gov's request for emergency assistance. He appreciates the quick response. Generators, H2O enroute."
Thousands across the Miami Valley were still without power Saturday, a day after hurricane like winds exceeding 80 mph toppled power lines and trees.
State emergency officials say between 800,000 and 1 million outages were reported on Saturday morning. Kasich cited the widespread losses combined with excessive heat as factors that could creat a crisis for Ohioans.
The Ohio EMA reported Saturday night that the state's electric utility providers had restored service to more than 105,000 customers.
The one confirmed death was out of Muskingum County.
Dayton Power & Light reported that at the height of the storm 175,000 people were without power. About 40,000 were restored Friday night. More than 1,000 crews are working to restore power, including several out of town crews. DP&L reported that it may take a few days to restore power.
DP&L stated on Saturday some customers may be without power until Wednesday.
Ohio Edison officials said that 400 people are working to restore power in Clark County, but say that it may take until Sunday night or Monday morning for all power to be restored.
Duke Energy spokeswoman Shirley Moore said Duke Energy has all available crews as well as contractors from Progress Energy and Alabama Power companies working to restore power.
Restoration could take multiple days, utility company officials said.
“The thunderstorms caused significant damage to DP&L’s electrical systems throughout our service area. Today our crews are continuing to work to dorothymake repairs to the transmission system—the high voltage power lines that bring power to cities and villages,” DP&L officials said in a statement.
Many cooling centers are available in the area
-JSP Fire District. Located at 403 W. Main Street in St. Paris.
-Champaign County Red Cross. Located at 658 Bodey Circle.
-The Fairhaven Church in Centerville. Located at 637 East Whipp Road. Opened by the American Red Cross.
-The Miamisburg Senior Adult Center. Located at 305 East Central Ave. Opened by the city of Miamisburg.
-EUM Church in Union City. Located at 117 N. Franklin St. Opened by the American Red Cross.
-Tri-Village Rescue in New Madison. Located at 320 N. Main St. Opened by the American Red Cross.
-Butler Twp. Fire Station 88. Located on Little York Road. Opened by Butler Twp.
-Vandalia Recreation Center. Located on Stone Quarry Road. Opened by the American Red Cross.
-Masonic Temple, 600 North Main Street. Bellefountaine, OH
-Sidney Middle School, 980 Fair Road, Sidney, OH. Opened by the American Red Cross.
-Sunday Only: Dayton Cultural and RTA Transit Center on 40 S. Edwin C. Moses Blvd.
-John Bryant Community Center in Yellow Springs, located at 100 Dayton St., until 4:30 p.m.
-Officials are also directing people to local libraries if they need to escape the heat.
“Trees are down, bleachers were thrown, just about anything the wind could pick up was damaged. Poles were broken. There’s extensive damage,” Suter said.
Moore said Ohio was one of the hardest hit areas and it could take days to restore power. She suggested individuals with medical conditions may want to seek alternative shelter.
“We are working as quickly as possible,” Moore said.
Clark County
Clark County Emergency Management Agency Director Lisa D'Allessandris urged the public to be patient as crews assess and repair the damage caused by Friday's violent storm.
"Lines that are still live are still down in roads," she said.
Branches are also down on lines and roads. Once those are handled, "then they can start getting onto restoration." Because the power outages happened during a heat wave, EMA has arranged for nursing homes and extended care facilities that can accept the elderly, frail or medically dependent, such as those who need oxygen.
Anyone who wants to arrange for that assistance should call 211, Clark County's information referral line.
D'Allessandris also encouraged homeowners to turn off power to as many things as possible so that when power is restored, it does not surge and start a fire.
German Twp. fire chief Tim Holman said the station's power was out for several hours, but was restored Saturday afternoon. Several areas of the township were still without power, including all of Tremont City.
Holman said they made a few runs for power surges on Saturday, but there were no injuries or damage to the homes. He said residents without power must remember to unplug appliances before they leave because some will still be on when the power returns and cause surges or other issues.
"They weren't serious," Holman said. "We had a couple people whose power had come back on and they had left appliances, like a stove and items like that, and it became a fire hazard."
Reported closures & restrictions
Dorothy Lane Market, 6177 Far Hills Ave., closed on Friday due to a power outage and will open at 6 a.m. on Sunday. Oakwood and Springboro locations are now open.
“Something like that never is good for business, but a lot of our other stores see an increase in business. We’re hoping it reopens by tomorrow or at least in a day or two,” said Tom Hart, manager of a Dorothy Lane Market in Oakwood that is open.
The Kettering Recreaction Complex at 2900 Glengarry Drive was once closed but has now reopened.
The Kroger at Whipp Road and Bigger Road in Kettering is closed due to power outage. Employees had a large dumpster in the lot throwing away bad food. A posted sign read, "Closed until further notice due to power outage."
The Ace Hardware on Clyo Road in Centerville is closed.
Centerville Station Road, just east of Clyo, is closed off for a block due to a power pole that is leaning as if ready to fall on the road. According to reports, an RTA gazebo in front of Centerville High School is closed, marked off with cones and yellow tape. It was hit by a tree limb and is leaning, ready to fall over as well.
Huber Heights officials are restricting all open burning within city limits until Sunday. There are restrictions on bonfires and fireplaces, anyone with permits for open burning and any permit requests. City officials ask that all citizens help by no participating in open burning and discard smoking materials properly - not on the ground.
A Music in the Park event was cancelled in Xenia due to the heat. The event was to be held in Shawnee Park from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
'Not tornadic'
National Weather Service Meteorologist Allen Randall said wind gusts at the Dayton International Airport reached 82 mph at 4:18 p.m. Friday. Randall said an extremely hot and humid air mass fueled a storm system that’s rarely seen in Ohio and are akin to a weak hurricane or tornado.
“I would call it a very high straight line wind event. It happens more in the plains. It occurs in the summertime Minnesota. It sometimes makes it into Ohio. But it’s a rare event. Those kinds of winds are stronger than a low end hurricane,” Randall said.
“This was not tornadic...This was the high end wind equivalent of a weak tornado. But it was definitely intense wind and wide spread.” Randall said Miami Valley can expect more severe weather today.
Temperatures are expected to reach the low to mid-90s with a heat index of about 100-degrees.
Randall said Miami Valley can expect more severe weather today.
Temperatures are expected to reach the low to mid-90s with a heat index of about 100-degrees.
“There’s a chance we’re going to see thunderstorms develop and there’s the potential for additional wind damage. I don’t think it’s going to be as wide spread or as intense (as Friday’s storm). But there will be 60 mile per hour winds and chance of severe thunderstorms.”
Hot, humid weather is expected through the Fourth of July.
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