Amid storm damage, Washington D.C., Eastern states feel the heat

Residents of Washington D.C. and surrounding states are dealing Saturday morning with the aftermath of a fierce storm that pummeled the region late Friday night, leaving scores without power during what is expected to be a sweltering weekend.

The National Weather Service said six people died and 20 reported injuries from Friday’s extreme weather. Two of those fatalities occurred in Fairfax County, Va., according to the Washington Post; both people were struck by falling trees.

The region’s three largest utilities -- Pepco, Dominion Virginia Power and BGE -- reported that more than 1.3 million homes in the area were without power as of Saturday morning.

According to CNN, nearly 4 million homes across a wider swath of states -- ranging from Indiana to West Virginia -- are affected by outages. On its Twitter account, Pepco said it would take “several days” to fully restore power to its customers.

That’s cause for concern as many states in the region continue to experience extreme heat waves. Friday was the hottest June day on record for Washington D.C., with a peak temperature of 104 degrees.

Temperatures are predicted to remain high this weekend, and lack of air conditioning could be harmful to older adults, very young children and people with illnesses. Friday’s extreme heat spurred intense storms that night, with wind gusts clocking at 70 mph or higher surging through the area.

The Washington Post’s Capital Weather Gang collected pictures of the storm and its aftermath, including downed trees and crushed cars, on Twitter.

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