weather

A couple of Liberty Street residents splash around in flood waters that covered about 50 yards of the roadway following this evening's heavy rainstorm.

The clouds after the storm late yesterday were pretty spectacular. I was tied up on something else, so didn't have much time drive around for pictures. But as soon as I was free, I went out to one of my favorite spots along Creek Road and took this picture.

A house has been reportedly struck by lightning at 11053 Mill Road, East Bethany.

There is a smell of smoke in the residence.

Bethany Fire Department being dispatched.

UPDATE 5 22 a.m.: More manpower requested to the scene. A house across the street also appears to have been struck. A chief requests help to further investigate the homes.

UPDATE 5:32 a.m.: Two houses are without power. National Grid requested to the scene (note: So far, no other power outages reported in the county).

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A severe thunderstorm is passing through the area and a storm warning is in effect until 6 a.m. for parts of Genesee County.

A storm capable of producing damaging winds up to 60 mph is currently centered around Medina and moving southeast at 30 mph.

The storm may pass directly through Oakfield and Byron.

Heavy hail and cloud-to-ground lightning are part of the storm.

The National Weather Service warns that people outdoors should seek shelter immediately. 

UPDATE 5:02 a.m.: New warning from the National Weather Service says the storm is centered near Attica and continues moving southeast at 25 mph.

Photo: Hail on the porch of Tammy Way at 4 a.m.

More than an inch of rain has already fallen on Genesee County this morning and more than an inch more is expected by 1 p.m., according to the National Weather Service.

There is an increased chance of flooding on roadways.

Creeks and streams may see water levels rise with some cresting at the top of their banks.

A front of heavy rain showers and thunderstorms are expected to move through the area from now until 1 p.m.

Areas with poor drainage are expected to flood.

The weather service warns that most flood-related deaths are come people driving across flooded roads.

"Flood waters are usually deeper than they appear," warns the weather service. "Just one foot of flowing water is powerful enough to sweep vehicles off the road."

Wednesday, I started a project about people working in the hot weather -- breaking news has gotten in the way of finishing it in the way that I planned.

I did get a chance on Wednesday to talk with David Bogue, a local UPS driver, Paul Bernardini, co-owner of Pauly's Pizza, and Jeff Wuest, owner of Excel Fence Company.

All three talked about the need to stay hydrated.

Bogue's truck doesn't have air conditioning and he's in and out of the hot weather all day, constantly moving.

"(Staying hydrated) is about all you can do in this," Bogue said.

Pauly's on Wednesday was, well, hot, like a pizza kitchen. 

"On a day like today, you wish it were December," Bernardini said. "There's not much you can do when it's 90 degrees outside. It's 100 degrees inside with the ovens going. You can walk into any place in town right now and it's going to be hot."

Bernardini said he makes sure he and his staff drink lots of fluids on hot days because there is no escaping the heat.

Wuest (above right, with Justin Finch, left) said dealing with the heat is just part of the job for him and his employees.

"We pack a cooler full of water and try to work at a steady pace," Wuest said. "We try not to over exert ourselves. We try to grab shade where we can and take breaks. Make sure to put sun block on and all that good stuff."

In case you haven't noticed, it's hot.

The current temperature is in the mid 90s with a heat index over 100 degrees.

An excessive heat warning is in effect until 7 p.m.

For the next 10 days, at least, there is no relief from the heat in sight, unless you consider 87 degrees instead of 90 to be relief.

This morning, we did a quick video with City of Batavia Fire Chief Jim Maxwell about staying safe in hot weather.

A severe thunderstorm capable of producing quarter-sized hail and 60 mph winds is moving into Genesee County from the west and may reach Oakfield and Batavia.

The storm is currently located near Akron and is moving east at 25 mph.

The warning is in effect until 4:30 p.m.

There are six small power outages -- all affecting fewer than five customers each -- in Genesee County.

There are three in Alexander in the area of Route 20 between Brookville and Putnam roads, and three in Pavilion in the area of Hawks Road.

UPDATE 11:12 p.m.: The size of the outages has expanded. The Alexander outage now effects 84 customers and the Hawks Road outage effects 211 customers.

At 10:26 p.m., doppler radar indicated a line of severe thunderstorms had formed and it was moving east at 40 mph, according to the National Weather Service.

The storm is capable of producing cloud-to-ground lightning and people outdoors should seek shelter immediately. 

The storms are along a line extending from Point Breeze to six miles east of Darien or along a line extending from 11 miles north of Albion to nine miles southwest of Batavia.

The storm is capable of producing damaging winds up to 60 mph and potentially damaging hail.

"These are dangerous storms," the weather service warns. "If you are in the path, prepare immediately for damaging winds, destructive hail and deadly cloud-to-ground lightening."

If indoors, the weather service warns people to stay away from windows.

The warning is effect until 11:45 p.m., a thunderstorm watch remains in effect until 1 a.m.

UPDATE 10:57 p.m.: The fast moving storm has passed through southern Genesee County and the warning for southern Genesee County is cancelled.

UPDATE 11:05 p.m.: The warning is now cancelled for all of Genesee County. A watch remains in effect until 1 a.m.

More than 2,160 National Grid customers have been without power for an hour and repair crews are unlikely to restore power before 10 p.m.

The effected area covers from just east of the city limits to Morganville and the eastern edge of Stafford down to Little Canada and East Bethany at Roanoke Road.

The outage may be related to a power line reported down and burning on Main Road, Stafford, at 8 p.m.

Overhead on the scanner: "I hope everybody's got their windows up. The rain's coming in sheets eastbound."

UPDATE 11:15 a.m.: Same voice, "I'm in the middle of a monsoon."

A tree is down in the area of 7116 North Bergen Road, Bergen, and wires may be down with it.

There is a report of power out in the area.

The tree is totally blocking the roadway.

Bergen fire is responding.

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There is currently a flood watch in effect for Genesee County and it is scheduled to remain in effect through Monday morning.

Heavy rain combined with already saturated ground and creeks running high creates a greater danger of localized flooding, the National Weather Service has warned.

The low, heavy clouds looked pretty ominous earlier today, but produced no rain.

The good news is, we should be getting some sun Thursday, Friday and Saturday with daytime temperatures in the 60s.

The photo was taken on Bank Street Road, just outside of the city limits.

The driver of a car that was struck by a large, wind-downed tree on Lewiston Road yesterday was not injured in the 11:13 a.m. crash.

Eileen E. Siano, 49, of Lewiston Road, was northbound when she noticed a tree starting to fall into the roadway. Siano swerved to the right to try and avoid the falling oak, but it struck her car, causing heavy damage.

Siano was driving a 2008 Chevy sedan.

(initial report)

The National Weather Service has extended the high wind warning to 8 p.m.

It was originally expected to expire at 4 p.m.

Winds of 25 to 30 mph predicted with gusts up to 60 mph possible.

In the past hour, calls for trees and utility poles down have subsided, and the wind seems to have died down a bit, but a strong wind warning remains in effect until 4 p.m.

There are about a dozen locations where power outages have been reported, most significantly in Elba, where 871 National Grid customers are without power. The power outage was reported at 8:48 a.m. and no ETA for when power will be restored.

Above, what's left of a tree that blew down on Lewiston Road in Oakfield. Below, a contractor saws off a large broken limb from a tree on Wortendyke Road, Town of Batavia, that was hanging precariously over the roadway.

There are at least six power outages in the county, most of them effecting fewer than five National Grid customers each.

One outage, in Alabama, has cut power to 189 customers.

Winds between 30 and 40 mph with gusts up to 60 mph are possible today through 4 p.m.

The National Weather Service warns that strong winds could bring down trees and power lines.

Drivers of high profile vehicles should exercise caution.

A flash flood watch for the region has been cancelled.

There's a 50-percent chance of precipitation today, and it will be partly cloudy.