Ohio Power Grid Shattered by 70 mph Windstorm, Hundreds of Thousands Still Dark

A powerful windstorm swept across 61 Ohio counties with gusts up to 70 mph, causing widespread outages and the worst grid damage in over a decade (the 2012 derecho). By Saturday, outage counts fluctuated from roughly 228,000 to 304,813, with tens of thousands still without power in Franklin County and across central Ohio; around 80,000 had been restored earlier. More than 2,700 crews were in the field, with additional teams en route, focusing on areas like the Canal Winchester substation as restoration continues around the clock to bring every customer back online.