Severe storms drench area
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Severe storms with strong lighting triggered fires and strong flooding Friday throughout the area.
Heavy flooding swept across Allegheny and Logan townships as well as parts of Altoona, according to Blair County Emergency Management Director Mark Taylor.
"There were also several accidents. Currently, the 911 center is in overload mode," Taylor said during a brief break at 5:30 p.m. Friday.
Gillian's Run also caused flooding in Duncansville on Friday afternoon. Residents along Cambridge Drive in Willowbrook Village were flooded when Castle Drive was washed out. A culvert and roadway were replaced in the spring, but the work was washed away Friday, closing Castle Drive between Elcona Street and Cambridge Drive.
Water from Gillian's Run gushed along Cambridge Drive, flooding mobile homes between the street and the stream bank.
A large tree fell and crushed the Laurel Pavillon on the campus at Penn State Altoona.
There were no fatal accidents or loss of life reported when Taylor spoke with the Mirror on Friday evening.
"Emergency operation centers in Logan Township and Altoona were opened to help with nonemergency calls, to take the load off the 911 center," Taylor said.
Altoona firefighters responded to a call at the former Archway Ministries church at 401 Fifth Ave. after a lightning strike ignited its steeple about 3 p.m.
Several neighbors said they heard a "crack" that was so loud they looked outside, only to see flames at the church. City firefighters doused the fire, knocking out a section of the steeple, within a few minutes.
The storm also caused a power outage that affected more than 4,000 Penelec customers in Blair County between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m Friday.
Penelec spokesman Todd Meyers said workers in Blair County were reporting that they had never seen so much lighting in a storm before.
Lightning strikes can hit equipment and trip protection devices in electrical substations. Power at the Logan Valley Mall was out briefly because of a problem with a substation, he said.
"There was a lot of lightning. Fortunately, it happened in the daytime because it's nice to have crews there and ready to go. We will keep working until all customers are restored. It's a dynamic situation. As soon as one outage is fixed, another one is reported," he said.
"With all wind and rain, there are bound to be outages going into tomorrow."