Heat, storms cause power outages; Sheetz opens; JD Vance visits Big Rapids; and more

Hi, it's Wednesday.

🎧 Prefer to listen to the news? Here are today's top stories .

Weather: Today's expected high will be 86 degrees . It'll be partly sunny and not as hot, but humid, with a heavy thunderstorm. Be on the lookout for flash flooding, hail and localized damaging wind gusts.

And speaking of the weather ...

After yesterday's scorching heat and severe storms that set off tornado sirens, more than 365,000 homes and businesses are without power this morning.

By 10 p.m., powerful storms had knocked out electricity to nearly 143,000 Consumers Energy customers in northern Michigan and the Grand Rapids area, and an additional 224,000 DTE Energy customers in southeast Michigan. Consumers Energy said they would "work through the night" and DTE was "working as quickly and safely as possible" to restore service and was bringing in hundreds of additional crew members "from outside our area to help speed restoration."

Here's more and stay with Freep.com for the latest updates .

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Also worth reading

🗳 Election: Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance stopped by Big Rapids on Tuesday in an attempt to turn local frustration against an electric vehicle battery plant project into support for former President Donald Trump.

🏥 Health: McLaren Health Care said its technology platforms have been fully restored following an Aug. 5 ransomware attack that disrupted operations at all 13 of its hospitals, surgery, infusion and imaging centers, along with its network of 113,000 medical providers throughout Michigan, Indiana and Ohio, reports Kristen Jordan Shamus.

🏈 Sports: The Detroit Lions have set their 53-man roster for the 2024 season (with 52 players, currently). See who made the team .

🛒 Business: Michigan has its first Sheetz store ! It opened for business Tuesday near Detroit Metro Airport, attracting large crowds of customers who packed the new Romulus location and overfilled its parking lot.

🎵 Entertainment: Big Sean's new album, "Better Me Than You," will release Friday, his first album release since 2020 .

💰 Money: When it comes to social security benefits, here's what retirees could see in 2025 , according to Susan Tompor.

⏰ Despite the intense heat we've had the last two days, fall will be here before we know it. And with it comes daylight saving time. Here's all you need to know to prepare to set your clock back one hour .

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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Heat, storms cause power outages; Sheetz opens; JD Vance visits Big Rapids; and more