Several hundred Eversource customers in West Hartford were without power following a thunderstorm that turned out have higher winds than initially anticipated.

A tree landed on power lines and caught fire on South Quaker Lane and St. Charles Street on Friday night. Courtesy photo

By Ronni Newton

A slow-moving storm from the southwest hit West Hartford shortly after 8 p.m. Friday – bringing with it winds in excess of 50 mph that knocked down limbs and even entire trees throughout town, resulting in downed power lines.

The forecast called for the possibility of strong storms, and even though the storm weakened slightly before arriving in town, it was really the wind, rather than lightning, that caused the damage.

Tree down on Argyle near the entrance to Fern Park. Courtesy of Allison Rowlson

At its peak, several hundred Eversource customers in West Hartford lost power, many of them in the area of South Quaker Lane and St. Charles Street, where a large tree landed on power lines that then burst into flames on the street.

A tree landed on power lines and caught fire on South Quaker Lane and St. Charles Street on Friday night. Courtesy photo

On Saturday morning, crews were working to remove debris from the roadway where possible, according to Director of Public Works John Phillips, who noted that there were about 200 customers still without power. By 11:15 a.m., that number had dropped to 71 – with half of those in the South Quaker Lane/St. Charles area – according to Eversource’s outage map.

A tree landed on power lines and caught fire on South Quaker Lane and St. Charles Street on Friday night. Courtesy photo

Town Manager Rick Ledwith shared the following update, which he said came from Phillips, as of 9 a.m. Saturday:

• North Main Street, south of Fern Street – Roadway opened and debris removed.
• 41 South Main Street – Made safe. We will return to chip up and remove the remaining debris.
• Boulevard at Four Mile – Tree made safe. We will return to haul away the remaining debris.
• Colonial / Florence / Somerset – Roadway opened. We will return to haul away the remaining debris.
• South Quaker Lane and St. Charles Street –  Tree has been cleared and the roadway has been opened.
• 136 Argyle – Road will remain closed until Eversource clears the wires. The location is at the bend near the Fern Park entrance walkway, so the impact to traffic is limited.
• 126 Vera – Roadway has been opened. We will return to remove the remaining wood debris.
• Ringgold Street cul-de-sac – Impassable due to a tree down. The area has been made safe with barricades. We will return to haul away all remaining tree debris.
• Fern / Hamilton – Tree down.

Saturday’s weather remains hot and humid, and according to the National Weather Service there is another risk of thunderstorms in the afternoon and early evening.

NBC Connecticut Chief Meteorologist Ryan Hanrahan said in a post on X Saturday morning that the risk of severe storms in the area was a 2 out of 5.

⚡️ Updated Severe Weather Risk Today ⚡️

⛈️ We’ve been upgraded to a level 2 (out of 5) risk for severe storms today. Scattered strong storms late this afternoon could contain heavy rain, lightning, and gusty wind.

👀 Keep an eye to the sky later today. pic.twitter.com/Y6S0a7GPAe

— Ryan Hanrahan (@ryanhanrahan) August 8, 2026

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