Area cleans up from powerful storm

  Eyewitness News

(New York - WABC, June 28, 2007) (WABC) -- Thousands of people across the Tri-State are cleaning up and dealing with Wednesday's storm.

Powerful thunderstorms swamped roads and train tracks, tore down tree branches and knocked out power in parts of the city. Cars were stalled on flooded roadways in Queens, including the northbound Van Wyck Expressway, Grand Central Parkway and Jackie Robinson Parkway.

Long Island also took quite a beating from the thunder storms but today resident were trying to clean up after strong winds and rains sent trees toppling, some of them landed on homes and cars.

Meantime, three different cars got stuck in sinkholes at the Home Depot parking lot in Elmont.

Roads in Valley Stream flooded quickly, so crews placed cones near the deepest parts to warn drivers.

Power Outages:

Con Edison crews are working 16 hour shifts as they continue to restore power to homes and businesses affected by Wednesday's severe thunderstorms, which knocked out electrical service to approximately 18,000 customers in Westchester County and 11,000 customers in Queens.

The communities of Mamaroneck, New Rochelle, White Plains, Larchmont, Rye, Rye Brook, Tuckahoe, Scarsdale, and Harrison experienced the greatest impact from the severe weather. Lightning, heavy rain, and high winds caused extensive damage to the electrical system as trees and power lines came down during the storms. In Queens, the areas hit hardest included Jamaica and South Ozone Park.

Customers without power are urged to report service problems online at www.conEd.com, or by calling Con Edison's toll-free customer service number 1-800-75-CON ED (1-800-752-6633). When reporting an outage, customers should have their Con Edison account number available, if possible, and report whether their neighbors also have lost power.

ConEd offers the following safety tips for its customers