FENNVILLE, Mich. — Power went out in large areas of western Allegan County between 5:30 and 6:30 a.m. as areas of snow developed early Thursday.
By 10 a.m., more than 5,000 Consumers Energy customers were without power from Allegan north to scattered areas of western Ottawa County , according to the company’s outage map. Most locations were expected to have power restored by 1 p.m.
The snow was particularly troublesome for power lines because of a combination of wet snow and trees that still have a lot of leaves on them. That, and the fact that West Michigan did not experience much of the kind of summer weather events that knock down a lot of the weak trees and dead branches that accumulate over time.
There was at least one unconfirmed report of a tree on a vehicle and another report that a tree fell on a house. No injuries were reported in either incident.
Meanwhile, the stretch of I-196 between Zeeland and Hudsonville proved treacherous for a few drivers that ended up in the median or in a ditch between 5:30 a.m.and 6:30 a.m.
