(MyKeeneNow) Severe thunderstorms across New Hampshire on Tuesday evening caused significant destruction.
One of the hardest-hit areas was west Keene, where residents of Tanglewood Estate found themselves displaced after trees crashed into several homes.

The storms, which began around 7 p.m., caused significant damage throughout the Monadnock Region, with reports of trees down and power lines severed. William Hinkle, Eversource’s media relations manager, described the impact as widespread, necessitating a swift and coordinated response from emergency crews.

“We had crews on standby and pre-positioned in regions across the state tonight in preparation for potential outages,” said Hinkle in an email.

Eversource reported more than 14,000 customers without power by Tuesday night, prompting the deployment of approximately 100 line, tree, and service crews to restore electricity. Despite efforts overnight, nearly 2,000 outages persisted into Wednesday morning.

In Keene, emergency services were inundated with calls as the storm swept through the area. The Keene Fire Department responded to approximately 35 separate incidents, ranging from trees on power lines to partial home collapses, according to a news release. One of the most urgent calls came at about 7:20 p.m. from 8 Glen Road, where a single-family home suffered a partial collapse after being struck by a falling tree, the release said. Damage is estimated at between $50,00 and $75,000. 

Initial reports indicated multiple individuals trapped, including a child. Upon arrival, emergency crews found that all residents had been freed from the debris. The adult occupant was transported to Cheshire Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, while the child escaped unharmed.

The storm response, compounded by a temporary radio failure at the Southwest New Hampshire District Fire Mutual Aid dispatch center. The failure, attributed to a lightning strike, briefly crippled communication between dispatch and responding units, hampering the coordination of mutual aid efforts.

Throughout the city, the fire department assisted displaced residents, ensuring their safety and providing guidance on safe practices amidst the ongoing hazards.

Looking ahead, officials are preparing for additional storms forecasted for Wednesday afternoon, which may exacerbate existing damage and lead to further outages.

Please call 9-11- to report emergencies or request emergency assistance, and take steps to be prepared in case you and your family experience any storm damage or power outages.

City staff are directing the public to Ready.gov/plan  , which provides a step-by-step plan to prepare for disasters and emergencies, including having the following minimum supplies prepared in advance: water, food, battery-powered radio, flashlight, first aid kit, extra batteries, etc. Visit Ready.gov/kit  for a thorough list of recommended preparedness supplies.

For updates on power restoration efforts, visit the Eversource outage map: https://outagemap.eversource.com/external/default.html

UPDATED 7-17-24, 12:26 PM