FLORENCE, Ky. — Roads are closed and many remain without power in Florence Thursday morning, after strong storms swept through the Tri-State overnight.
Our crews in Florence saw damaged homes and businesses throughout the city, including damaged roofs and downed trees. Big Red's Appliances on Dream Street appeared to have suffered significant roof damage, and the Rodeway Inn nearby was also damaged.
Watch below to get a look at some of the damage:
The City of Florence said several neighborhoods and businesses are still without power, as crews respond to downed trees, power lines and damaged utility infrastructure throughout the community.
Utility poles were broken along Industrial Road, causing the Boone County Public Safety Communications Center and Boone Center to lose power; the outages also impacted telephone lines. The county's non-emergency line is temporarily down, and 911 calls are currently being routed to Kenton County's 911 dispatch center — though callers are still being connected with emergency services, the City of Florence said.
Boone County officials are asking residents to only call 911 with urgent, life-safety matters while they work to restore full service.
The Florence office of the Boone County Clerk's Office will be closed Thursday because of storm impacts; the Burlington location is open and available to those who need services.
The City of Florence said the city's water tower also temporarily lost power, causing water to discharge through a relief valve, as it was designed to do. The city said the storm caused an "overflow event" at the water tower.
"During normal operations, Greater Cincinnati Water Works was actively filling the tower; however, due to the loss of electrical power at the site, the pumps were unable to move water through the system, leading to the overflow condition," City of Florence officials wrote in a press release.
Water can be seen discharging from the tower, but the city said this is a normal and expected response.
Currently, power has not yet been restored to the Mall Road area and the water tower is still without electricity, the city said. The city said there is no impact to water service or supply for customers.
Damage has been reported throughout Florence, including Dream Street, Lee Drive, Preakness Drive, Circle Drive, Locust Street, Melinda Lane and S.t Jude Drive, among others, the City of Florence said.
Crews are working to restore power and the City of Florence said it is aware that several traffic signals have been knocked out of service as well.
Additional damage assessments in Florence are ongoing, the city said, and officials expect more damage will be reported as the morning goes on.
The city is advising residents to:
- Stay away from downed power lines and assume all lines are energized.
- Treat intersections with non-functioning traffic signals as four-way stops.
- Use caution when driving, as debris and hazardous conditions may still exist.
- Avoid areas where emergency crews and utility workers are actively working.
- Report power outages directly to their utility provider.
