Severe Thunderstorms Knock Down Trees, Power Lines

DETROIT (WWJ/AP) - Severe thunderstorms packing heavy rain and high winds knocked down trees and power lines in parts of Michigan.

The storms Wednesday left thousands of electricity customers without power in the Detroit area and crews worked into Thursday to restore service.

As of 4:30 a.m. Thursday, 5,000 homes and businesses scattered throughout metro area remained without power. That's down from over 12,000 at the peak of the storm.

DTE is constantly updating a power outage map to show residents where to expect the worst. Click here to check the map.

Wednesday's storm left a trail of damage after strong wind gusts over 50 miles per hour were reported in Detroit, Romulus and Canton. AccuWeather reported a wind gust of 62 miles per hour in Milford.

That wind no doubt played a roll in knocking over several trees in the metro area, including in Dearborn Heights where an estimated 60-foot tall tree narrowly missed two houses near Fenton and Richardson Streets.

Reporting live from the scene, WWJ's Mike Campbell said the giant tree was covering the entire front lawns of the two homes.

"You cannot go up their sidewalks. The driveway of one, they've cut the branches directly in the driveway so that the car can get in and out almost through a tunnel of tree branches," he said.

Know before you go: Keep it tuned to WWJ Newsradio 950 for traffic and weather, every 10 minutes on the 8s. Check the extended forecast and up-to-the-minute conditions on the CBS Detroit Weather Page.

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