Power Outages Linger In MA After Tropical Storm Isaias

WORCESTER, MA — More than 120,000 in Massachusetts were still without power Wednesday afternoon following Tropical Storm Isaias, with a majority of the outages west of the Worcester area.

As of noon Wednesday, towns like Hubbardston, Hardwick, Holland and Wales were completely without power. More than half the residents in Spencer, Sutton and Westminster were without power, according to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency.

Worcester was largely spared widespread outages, but about 1,800 residents were without power on Wednesday morning. That was down to 200 by noontime. Shrewsbury and Boylston had no power outages Wednesday.

Communities east of Interstate 495 were spared large outages. Lincoln had the most outages Wednesday afternoon, with about 28 percent of residents without power.

A handful of outages between Boston and Cape Cod dotted the map, but most towns only had a handful of residents without power. The lone standout was Rehoboth, where over 1,600 were still without power.

Isaias' storm track edged along the western part of the state near the New York border, but the storm sent powerful winds and brief but heavy rain east of Interstate 91. A tornado warning was issued around 5 p.m. Tuesday in the Clinton area, but towns in that part of the region fared relatively well. Only three Clinton residents were without power Wednesday morning.

The storm caused a lot of tree damage in the area. Millbury firefighters responded to eight calls for downed trees, including one that hit a home. A fallen tree blocked Millbury Street in Auburn Tuesday night.

In Worcester, the Department of Public Works said storm cleanup could last through the weekend due to the high volume of debris scattered around the city.

At least one person died as a result of the storm. A Chelmsford Public Works employee clearing debris died when he collided with another vehicle, according to town officials.