Hundreds of Hunterdon and Somerset county residents clean up following intense Tuesday storms

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More than 3.000 JCP&L customers remain in the dark after severe storms rolled through Hunterdon and Somerset counties Tuesday evening. “We tried to get in the basement but we didn’t have time. It came so quick so we went into the center of our house,” said Nicole Stafford, who lives in the Three Bridges section of Readington Township. Straight-line winds are blamed for the destruction across the Flemington and Hillsborough areas as storms blew through around dinner time Tuesday evening. “Wind was going sideways, the rain was going sideways. I could have sworn it was a tornado,” she said. More than 3,000 JCP&L customers were still in the dark as of noon on Thursday in the region. “Oh, it’s really hot. I hate the heat so much and hopefully they fix it soon and it gets better soon,” said Layla Stafford, Nicole’s daughter. JCP&L crews continue to make repairs throughout Hunterdon and Somerset counties. “It’s been rough, rough for everybody and my daughter, she has asthma, so it’s hard for her to breathe in this weather,” added Nicole Stafford. JCP&L has set up several water and ice distribution centers for people without power, including the ShopRite just off the Flemington Circle. Workers inside say dozens, if not hundreds of people have taken advantage of those $5 vouchers. “I haven’t had power since Tuesday 6 p.m.,” said Mark Berger, of East Amwell Township. Berger stopped by the Flemington ShopRite for one of those vouchers. His power is expected to be restored at 11:30 p.m. Friday. “Fierce, it came on real quick. It didn’t last long but the wind was incredible,” he said. A JCP&L spokesperson says most areas will be restored Thursday night, but pockets of outages may remain into Friday or Saturday. "