Crews and residents around Philadelphia region prepare for heavy rain, strong winds in forecast for Wednesday

CBS News

05-03-2025

Officials and residents in the Philadelphia area are bracing for Wednesday to be a day of weather-related issues, including flight delays and power outages.
Wednesday is a NEXT Weather Alert day because of heavy rain and severe storms across the Philadelphia region. The strongest storms are expected between 2 and 8 p.m. Wednesday.
Philadelphia International Airport already has one flight canceled Wednesday with potentially more to come.
"Thunderstorms are always the worst because when there is a lightning strike within a 5-10 mile radius field, all activity stops," said Heather Redfern, public affairs manager for Philadelphia International Airport.
One of the biggest threats in our area is expected to be the high winds, and experts are warning everyone to take precautions now.
"Fallen trees and branches are probably the most destructive to our electric equipment," said PECO spokesperson Thomas Brubaker.
PECO said field crews are on standby, and if required, crews will open their emergency operations center. Customers are also asked to do their part — calling in any outages and having a plan before the storm.
"We ask that they have flashlights ready, they have their cell phones charged and they have water ready to go in the event they do have an outage," Brubaker said.
PSEG — New Jersey's largest utility provider — is also urging preparation.
"Go outside and secure the loose lawn chairs or take down that awning that may get damaged or become a projectile," says Rebecca Mazzarella, a spokesperson for PSEG.
In addition to trimming trees and upgrading infrastructure, PSEG also has crews mobilized.
"Our crews are also doing logistic checks so that our vehicles are gassed up, our bucket trucks are ready and we have all the transformers and equipment needed to respond right away," Mazzarella said.
Mary Zieglar from Delaware worries about falling trees on her property.
"Sometimes I'm sitting there having my coffee and I'm watching huge tall trees just sway back and forth and thinking, what happens if this comes the other way?" Zieglar said.
She, like many, is taking steps now and hoping for the best.
"Our neighbor just went onto our front porch and cleared off all of our pillows and anything we had sitting on our tables just in preparation for it," Zieglar said, "and I think our whole neighborhood kind of does the same thing."