Violent thunderstorms leave swath of destruction, knocks out power to thousands in New England

Storms knock out power to thousands in New England

GREENFIELD, Mass. — Utility crews are restoring power and tree removal teams are clearing roads following a series of powerful thunderstorms that struck New England.

Tens of thousands of electricity customers in Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Connecticut lost power during the Wednesday night storms. Several communities declared emergencies that kept school children at home Thursday.

There were no reports of serious injuries.

A spokeswoman for Western Massachusetts Electric Co. says there’s no timetable for restoring power to about 30,000 of its customers.

Other utilities reported about 13,000 power outages in Vermont, nearly 10,000 in Connecticut and 7,500 in New Hampshire.

Fire officials in Rindge, N.H., said a house fire may have been caused by lightning striking a satellite dish. No one was hurt.