[SleazyC]

While the power was out last night at around 1AM was tethered to my phone and following outage maps from Pepco and just gathering information. Window was open to try to get any cool air into the house and I hear a creaking/cracking sound coming from the backyard. Neighbor next door has a giant tree that was making some pretty frightening sounds so I really do hope we don't get nailed by storms again tonight.

[The Abominable Snowman]

The Surrender Tree on Rt. 5 at Osborne Turnpike came crashing down during last night's storm.



History was made... in a bad way.

Over 2 million on the east coast without power.

[Goldrush]

silver spring. lost power and a tree fell in our yard. cut off the branches, but can't do anything about the main trunk. tree stretch out to the sidewalk. Do I need to hire someone or will the city take care of it?

[BobsRevenge]

I'm near the end of the Orange line of the DC metro; power came back sometime between 11 and 2 while I was out. Feels good.

What a fucking storm.

edit: Still think we should do a DC metro area gaf get-together.

[RedSwirl]

It's at times like this that I'm glad I share a power grid with a retirement home.

[DarkWish]

No power here in Sterling, VA. Lots of traffic lights not working, most stores closed though some are trying to get by with cash only purchases. Fallen trees in areas, though they've been moved off the roads. They say it could be days before power returns.

At my uncle's house in Ashburn, VA now. Seems Ashburn still has power and everything is fine here. Will probably sleep over here tonight, hopefully the power returns soon.

Oh and they're calling for another round tonight... let's hope this storm isn't as bad.

[Curtisaur]

Did the storm knock out Instagram? FUUUUU. I'm trying to post a grimey pic of the axe and machete I just walked around the community with. #FWP I was taking care of tree branches that were down that I didn't want to have to deal with in 100 degree heat in the daytime. Got some weird looks. More people were out than I thought there would be. :|

So Instagram's downtime is because of the storms.

I just got back in after fixing a few AC systems that I am assuming the storm knocked out of whack and cutting a few more branches up. I still have power and so do the people in my immediate area thankfully.

Hope everyone else gets back up soon and is okay in this heat.

[Smiles and Cries]

stupid hot

[teiresias]

Big old limb fell on a guy's car last night and busted the rear window out of it. That's pretty much the worst damage I've seen within the small radius I've been out to here today (too damn hot to be getting in the car and wait for the AC to crank up).

[SquirrelNuckle]

I bet I've sold 50 weather radios today to so many people. Working retail after a storm like this suuuuuucks.

[Retro]

I bet I've sold 50 weather radios today to so many people. Working retail after a storm like this suuuuuucks.

Depends on where you're at.

Got plenty of storms in Indiana when I was working retail and nobody pulled a hair since everyone was used to weather like this. If there were storms immediately, we'd get a boost in flashlights and stuff, and ice was always a big seller, but otherwise nobody freaking out too much.

On the other hand, once I moved to the Mid-atlantic, I was shocked to see people buying carts full of bottled water and bread in anticipation of anything more than a few inches of snow. When we were supposed to get the remnants of tropical storm Hannah, people were buying candles, lanterns, etc. All it did was rain.

[Arcticfox]

Still no power at my house. Houses about 2 miles down the road got their power back about an hour ago so hopefully our power will be back soon. I am using my laptops to keep my cell phone charged.

[Jacob]

Water is out in parts of Baltimore County, MD (Reisterstown, Owings Mills, Pikesville) because a pumping station lost power sometime this morning. No idea when we're getting it back but I hope before the end of today. With so many without power, though, I'm sure it'll take time.

[Seraphis Cain]

Got hit extremely hard here in western Ohio. No power (or internet, I assume) at home. At a friend's right now. Could be a few days before everything is restored. Really bad damage around town. Trees down everywhere, roofs blown off, etc. Really sucks.

[Neuromancer]

stupid hot

Pretty much this, went for a walk in the woods and now I'm feeling disgusting.

[jman2050]

A crazy storm that knocks out power for millions of people combined with a ridiculous heat wave setting records all over the place. What a messed up combination.

I hope for the best for all of you without power. The heat is ridiculous here in Georgia, but I can't imagine not having AC to go along with it :/

[coopolon]

It's at times like this that I'm glad I share a power grid with a retirement home.

The houses across the street from me do share a powergrid with a retirement home and a funeral home and so they ALWAYS get power back way before anyone else. It is all kinds of infuriating to look across the street and see everyone's house lit up like a Christmas tree with air conditioners going full blast while sitting in my 90 degree living room.

Power just came back on though, so I can't complain. BG&E is threatening days until everyone is back up so I'm pretty lucky. They seriously got caught with their pants down.

Considering the forecast though, every single plug in my house has a portable electronic plugged in charging right now in anticipation of another power outage. 2 laptops, 2 cell phones, a kindle, an ipad, 2 ds's, and a psp.

[Dishwalla]

Now we are getting tornado warnings. What the fuck.

[Kaako]

Was watching a movie with friends at the time of the storm and one of my buddies got a call on his cell, turns out his job wanted someone to go to 12 of their sites spread out across MD to check on their hardware. He was on the road all night. Power came back about 15 minutes at my mom's. Hope it hold through the day.

That sucks. We called in at least 15 people to our site which has over 8000+ servers/DBs. It was freaking madness, running non stop and working for 14+ hours straight. A bunch of people are going in tonight as well because of the work left over. On the bright side I now have internet and electricity at home...yaay. lol

[GillianSeed79]

We got blasted in West Virginia, whole state is jacked. Some counties entirely without power apparently.

Tell me about it. I was just about to post a "should I get in the basement" thread last night when shit got nasty and the power went out. Slept in 90 degree heat in the dark. The governor declared a state of emergency. 52 of 55 counties have power outages. They say it might take a couple of days for the power to get turned on. Luckily my follks live like 30 minutes away in an area of Maryland that didn't get hit, so I guess I'm staying here for the next few days. Nearly my entire small city was in a blackout last night. I couldn't find a gas station with working pumps for like 15 miles. Took me like 90 minutes to drive here on the highway for a trip that usually takes 30 minutes. Looked at an outage map and it says there's like 5,000 plus still without power in my zip code, which is pretty small.

[teiresias]

Tornado warnings in Richmond, VA. The storm is tracking down the peninsula through Williamsburg and towards Newport News, VA. Heads up Tidewater-GAF!

[Bulbo Urethral Baggins]

Tell me about it. I was just about to post a "should I get in the basement" thread last night when shit got nasty and the power went out. Slept in 90 degree heat in the dark. The governor declared a state of emergency. 52 of 55 counties have power outages. They say it might take a couple of days for the power to get turned on. Luckily my follks live like 30 minutes away in an area of Maryland that didn't get hit, so I guess I'm staying here for the next few days. Nearly my entire small city was in a blackout last night. I couldn't find a gas station with working pumps for like 15 miles. Took me like 90 minutes to drive here on the highway for a trip that usually takes 30 minutes. Looked at an outage map and it says there's like 5,000 plus still without power in my zip code, which is pretty small.

You slept in the dark last night? I did too.
Anyway, I'm still alive guys. thanks for all the PMs wondering if I made it through the storm.

[Dedication Through Light]

Got power back this afternoon after 18 or so hours and then it started flickering again in this evenings thunderstorm...hope it doesnt go back out.

Some counties seem like they wont have power back until july 7th, according to Appalachian Power.

[GillianSeed79]

This is about two blocks from my apartment. Wind tore the roof off of this place. Trees are down everywhere. Also stay safe Richmond GAF. My sister lives there, but she drove down to Maryland with her two kids today.

[Dishwalla]

Tornado warnings in Richmond, VA. The storm is tracking down the peninsula through Williamsburg and towards Newport News, VA. Heads up Tidewater-GAF!

Yeah, we're waiting for it.

[Curtisaur]

Tornado warnings in Richmond, VA. The storm is tracking down the peninsula through Williamsburg and towards Newport News, VA. Heads up Tidewater-GAF!

Picture I got when the clouds started moving in. (Richmond)

[Jacob]

Water is out in parts of Baltimore County, MD (Reisterstown, Owings Mills, Pikesville) because a pumping station lost power sometime this morning. No idea when we're getting it back but I hope before the end of today. With so many without power, though, I'm sure it'll take time.

The water came back after only about 8-10 hours, so we've been pretty lucky so far. My thoughts remain with those who are still affected. Best of luck and stay safe.

[Baconbitz]

I bet I've sold 50 weather radios today to so many people. Working retail after a storm like this suuuuuucks.

It wasn't too bad for me. We were running on a generator and closed when it got dark because it would be harder to see then. Really wasn't that busy.

Edit: no tstorms here in Crownsville...yet.

[Lord_Byron28]

In nova, near manassas. Novec says we won't get power till Monday afternoon and we've been out since Friday night. Got off work round midnight last night and had to use the chainsaw to make it home through 3 giant trees and get around a broken powerline.

[Baconbitz]

Well according to google its supposed to start within the hour.

[DigitalDevil]

Left Boston this morning to start coming back to Atlanta.... Made it to Woodstock, VA on 81 then realized everything was down... No power anywhere. People lining up like crazy at the few gas stations with generators, and even crazier at hotels. All the people that lost power were looking for a hotel room, so,the people like me that were traveling through the area were left scrambling for a room. Made TWO reservations on Hotwire that ended up being without power. Finally got a room in Lexington, VA at a Day's Inn. Had to wait in line for forty minutes just to have the guy in front of me get the last room. luckily one of my failed reservations was another Day's Inn in Mint Hill and the owner "found" another room somehow. My wife, 21 month old son and I went to Ruby Tuesday's and then came back to hit the sack. Usually stay at nicer hotels but we are jut thankful for a room right now. We got lucky. I'm going to bed now. I don't think I have ever drank a long island iced tea so fast!

[GillianSeed79]

Left Boston this morning to start coming back to Atlanta.... Made it to Woodstock, VA on 81 then realized everything was down... No power anywhere. People lining up like crazy at the few gas stations with generators, and even crazier at hotels.

I-81 was horribad today where I live. Granted, we're not used to major delays unless there's a big accident. I seriously thought I was going to run out of gas in a two lane part of the highway with jersey walls on both sides of me and no shoulders because there was no gas to be found for miles. God, I would have been the biggest asshole on the road if that happened. Took my sister 4 plus hours to drive to Md. from Richmond. The funny thing is that I just visited my other sister in D.C. a couple weeks ago and told her that I would never want to live there because the traffic on I-95 is so bad. Where I live we get a big thunderstorm and the lights go out and you'd think people were trying to evacuate from a hurricane or something. That Boston drive is brutal too. I have family in Boston, so we used to do the 8 plus hour drive to Boston every summer from Maryland.

The crazy thing is people around the I-81 corridor train and have plans for big mass evacuations if there were ever some catastrophic event in the Northern Va./DC area. This is a relatively "minor" event as far as natural disasters go, but I think people will be fucked if there is ever a need for a big mass evac from that area. Hopefully that will never happen, because it will look like some Stephen King The Last Stand shit on the highways.

[akira28]

Still no power. Pepco has no idea when they will restore power. The last time I called the automated line, it gave an estimate of a week. Due to weather they're detecting a power outage in the Brookland area. Really? Holy fuck I hate Pepco. They issued a standard call to surrounding power companies, assuming they could buffer their worker numbers, and got a 30% response because other companies were dealing with their own shit. Fucking Pepco dropping the ball again, assuming too much, and they already have a shit reputation. I hope people fucking raise a backlash against them this time.

I have a truck battery and a power inverter. I drove through 3 powered down towns to find a Sears that was still open, to find buy them. Inverter beeps constantly when I plug my laptop in. But it has enough juice to run the router and modem. I just wanted it to run my fan, but apparently it doesn't have the power to do that either. My cold beer is getting warmer each time I get a new one. I'll have to bbq all the meat in my fridge tomorrow. The freezer might be ok for another day or so.

People drive like idiots without working stoplights. Sleeping Laying down in 90+ degrees with no air movement is teh suck. So hot. So fucking humid. I hate you all.

[JasonS]

Just got the power back in my part of Howard County.

We've been through a couple of hurricanes and ice storms, and I can't remember a full day without power or water.

[Arcticfox]

Still no power for me in Fairfax. Every other location within .5 miles got power back over a day ago. No estimate from the power company and all trucks I saw earlier have left.

Edit: Just got power back at 12pm. Glorious air conditioning.

[DarkWish]

Yea, still no power in Sterling, VA here. And no estimate on when it'll return either.

My dad is trying to figure out where we can get a generator from but that's going to be very hard to find at the moment.

[SteveMeister]

My folks are in Fairfax and their power came back after about 29 hours. My sister is in Falls Church and her power is still out. I live in rural Loudoun County and our power is expected back tomorrow evening. No damage on my property but neighbors lost a lot of trees, and a nearby restaurant had part of its roof blown off. A tree had blocked the road completely not far from my driveway, but not in the direction I need to go. Some folks from further down the road were cutting it up when I went out there Saturday morning. We stayed at some friends' who have power (and wifi!) last night and are going to my parents' tonight.

Some people in the area aren't expecting power back for a week. We're going to invest in a generator (later in the year when everything is back to normal and we won't be gouged). In 5 years this is the second multi-day outage we've faced. Solar would be nice too, but Virginia is a red state and in its infinite wisdom offers no incentives for solar or wind energy installations, so Solar City doesn't install here.

[Spacebar]

Ricmond VA-Gaf reporting in. I got power back yesterday around 4 and it went out again last night around 9. Sitting on the front porch browsing gaf. I'm thinking about going to go see Prometheus 1pm show at commonwealth 20 if anyone else is bored.

[Draft]

When I woke up early Saturday morning my bed was soaked with sweat. I thought for a minute that maybe it was a fever or something, but aside from being hot as hell I felt OK. That's about when I noticed that it was darker than normal. No light from outside, and no light from the alarm clock. Power was out, and it stayed out for over 24 hours.

I was lucky that yesterday was grocery day and there was almost nothing perishable in the fridge.

Annapolis peeps, holla back. Let's get beers sometime.

[789shadow]

I had no internet, phone, or cable yesterday. Fuck you Comcast. I expect that stuff to be up in the event of anything less than a Category 5 hurricane or an F5 tornado.

[MThanded]

My parents still don't have power. Also I cant call there home phone because the telephone company seems to r having difficulties now. What a damn mess.

Another near 100 degree day.

[Yasae]

You know DAMN well GAF wants to hear an update on Bethesda.

[MThanded]

Shit is a mess. No power for miles around their house. effing pepco.

[SleazyC]

Went out with friends yesterday and Rockville Pike was a mess. Seems like every other light was out and traffic was a mess. Also gas stations were mad houses. We drove past about 5 gas stations because the lines were ridiculous.

[Spacebar]

Just got power back! Hopefully no more big storms for a while.

Here is a list of places crews will be working
http://m.nbc12.com/autojuice?targetU...-without-power

Stay cool everyone!

[LaneDS]

Apparently I lucked out since I was in Fairfax and lost power for all of fifteen seconds. Glad to hear other folks in the area are starting to get their power back because it's disgusting outside, for sure.

[ThanksVision]

My power is still out since 10, so I guess 12 hours now, come on blacksburg, va...

Blacksburg. I'm going to school there next year, cool.

Had power out for a day but it came back last night thankfully. Hope your parents are okay op

[Eidan]

I'm hoping with this many people still without power, the federal government will shut down. Really don't feel like going into the office tomorrow.

[itwasTuesday]

Power came back yesterday afternoon and cox cable,internet and phone came on around 10:00 am today. This is in Alexandria.

[Curtisaur]

Verizon and AT&T network problems could delay power restoration because employees/lineman can't be reached to be told to come in to work.

http://dalecity.patch.com/articles/v...ower-companies

Widespread outages in the Verizon and AT&T networks are causing problems not only for mobile and home customers, but also for electric companies in Northern Virginia. Northern Virginia Electric Cooperative officials said they haven't been able to reach all their line technicians and operations personnel to ask them to report to work. NOVEC is asking all its line technicians to report to work, even if they didn't receive a phone call, NOVEC spokesman Mike Curtis said.

"The severe storms that hit the Washington metropolitan area Friday night – and the resulting power outages that have affected much of the region – have also affected services for some Verizon customers. Our operations teams currently are assessing the impact and are working to restore service as quickly as possible.

http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/2...ce-ar-2027010/

I'm in Richmond and have Verizon... and can confirm that text messaging is down for me.