Update: More Than 6,100 Dominion Power Customers in the Dark

Update (7:32 p.m.): Dominion Virginia Power spokeswoman Le-Ha Anderson told Patch it would be premature to guess when power will be fully restored.

"How long it will be, we don't know yet," she said, clarifying earlier, conflicting reports.

"What we do know is that we will be working into the night and into (Saturday)."

Dominion crews are still assessing damage, she said. Citing the downed wires near Barcroft Park, she said the power company doesn't yet know if any other areas of Northern Virginia sustained that level of damage.

Update (6:42 p.m.): Arlington County has issued a news release saying the most storm damage was in the area between Columbia Pike and Interstate 395, roughly between South Four Mile Run Drive and King Street. That includes the Fairlington area.

Some intersections in that area are without power and Arlington police are assisting with traffic.

Motorists are reminded to treat such intersections as four-way stops.

The storm downed seven trees, according to the county. No storm-related injuries have been reported.

Update (6:25 p.m.): Dominion Virginia Power estimates about 38,000 customers across Northern Virginia were without power Friday afternoon during the peak of the power outages.

Shortly after 6 p.m., that number had lowered a bit, to 29,000 customers still in the dark. Most of the damage was concentrated in South Arlington and the city of Alexandria, spokeswoman Le-Ha Anderson told Patch.

"We have made some progress with getting the lights back on," she said.

Trees were down in a number of locations. Thirteen cross arms were broken and several lines down in the area of South Columbus Street and South Chesterfield Road near Barcroft Park, she said. That area, near the Alexandria city limits, is inaccessible to trucks and crews are carrying equipment in to work on the problem.

Crews are assessing damage and will work through the night at restoring power, Anderson said. Workers from unaffected areas will be brought in to help.

"We will be working around the clock," Anderson said. "We don't expect this to go into multiple days, but it could be into (Saturday) before we have everybody back on."

Arlington County issued an alert shortly after 6 p.m. saying that the power company had indicated full restoration may take "several days."

As of 6:16 p.m., more than 6,100 customers in Arlington remained without power.

Dominion also is aware of extensive damage along Four Mile Run Drive. Arlington officials say most of the outages are concentrated around Fairlington and Columbia Pike. 

The county will have several facilities open through weekend in case residents need somewhere to cool off, including the Fairlington Community Center (closed Sunday), Walter Reed Community Center, Columbia Pike Library, Shirlington Library, Aurora Hills Library (closed Sunday) and Central Library.

The National Weather Service has extended the flash flood warning for Arlington until 7:30 p.m. Friday, as the chance for more thunderstorms will continue into early Saturday.

Phone numbers to keep handy:

• Dominion: 866-DOM-HELP
• Trees down: 703-228-6525
• Street flooding: 703-228-6555
• Emergencies: 911
• Non-emergencies: 703-558-2222

Update (5:10 p.m.): Arlington officials have heard anecdotal evidence that most of the power outages are concentrated in the southern part of the county.

The Barcroft Sports and Fitness Center will close at 7 p.m. if power has not been restored by that time, according to Parks and Recreation spokeswoman Susan Kalish. The programs currently going on there can continue to do so without power, she told Patch in an email. 

According to Kalish, "Major power distribution lines have been downed in the wooded area of Barcroft Park off the trail" near George Mason Drive. The county has notified Dominion Power and set up barricades.

As of 5:03 p.m., Dominion was reporting 7,385 customers without power in Arlington.

Update (4:48 p.m.): Across Northern Virginia, Dominion is aware of about 35,000 customers without power — mostly in Arlington, Alexandria and the Springfield area of Fairfax County, spokeswoman Le-Ha Anderson told Patch.

Dominion crews have been dispatched and were beginning to assess damage and make repairs as of about 4:45 p.m.

"That was a pretty powerful storm that came through, lots of lightning," Anderson said. "Some of our equipment was struck by lightning."

The power company does not yet have an estimate as to when electricity will be restored.

As of 4:46 p.m., Dominion was reporting 7,010 customers without power in Arlington.

Arlington County officials are not aware of any traffic signals affected by the outages.

Update (4:26 p.m.): As of 4:23 p.m., Dominion was reporting 7,154 customers without power.

Original article (4:05 p.m. Friday): Nearly 5,700 Dominion Virginia Power customers in Arlington are in the dark.

Dominion reported a spike in outages as a thunderstorm flashed and crackled outside Friday afternoon.

Arlington County is under a severe thunderstorm watch through 9 p.m. Friday. Arlington also is under a flash flood warning. Motorists are advised not to drive through standing water.

As the storm moved through Northern Virginia, the National Weather Service said it was capable of producing 70-mph wind gusts and hail the size of quarters.

As of 3:57 p.m., the power company was reporting 5,693 outages. Dominion serves 85,434 customers in Arlington.

[More: Dominion Virginia Power interactive outage viewer]

The area will continue to see a chance of showers and thunderstorms before midnight, and then a slight chance of more storms between midnight and 2 a.m., according to the National Weather Service.

Overall, up to a quarter of an inch of rain is expected to fall, with higher amounts possible due to thunderstorms.

The National Weather Service indicates varying chances of showers and thunderstorms every day in Arlington through the Fourth of July, which is Thursday.

Report Your Outage

Even if you believe your neighbor has already called the power company about your outage, you should call. This helps power crews pinpoint the location of the problem and restore electricity faster.

You can call Dominion at 1-866-DOM-HELP (1-866-366-4357) to report an outage, or use online or mobile reporting — here's how.

Food Safety

• An electrical power outage will affect the safe storage of refrigerated and frozen foods. Perishable food such as meat, poultry, seafood, milk and eggs that is not properly refrigerated or frozen may cause illness if consumed.
• The federal resource foodsafety.gov has a chart detailing how long specific foods remain safe when the power goes out.
• See: Refrigerated Food and Power Outages: When to Save and When to Throw Out

Additional Tips

• Stay away from downed wires as they may be live with electricity, even if they aren’t actively sparking.
• Do not use candles as they may pose a fire threat. Stock up on batteries for your flashlights before the storm hits.
• Be sure to operate generators safely.