Erie, Pennsylvania Declares State of Emergency After Overnight Storm Cuts Power to Thousands

The City of Erie, Pennsylvania declared a state of emergency on September 3, 2026, after a round of overnight thunderstorms tore through the area, knocking out power to tens of thousands of customers, closing schools and the county courthouse, and shutting down Presque Isle State Park.

This is Erie, Pennsylvania — not Erie County, New York, home to Buffalo, which had separate flooding the same week. More on that below.

Key facts

Declared: the City of Erie, Pennsylvania, declared a state of emergency on September 3, 2026
Cause: overnight thunderstorms with wind gusts near 60 mph that downed trees and power lines
Peak outages: more than 32,000 customers across the wider Erie area; about 20,000 were Penelec customers in Erie County, roughly 40% of all customers in the city of Erie
Closed: Erie’s public schools, the Erie County Courthouse, Presque Isle State Park and the Tom Ridge Environmental Center
Rainfall: storm-band totals of roughly 2 to 3.5 inches in the hardest-hit spots overnight
Restoration: outages fell to about 76 customers by late morning on September 4
Casualties: no injuries or deaths reported
Separate event: flash flooding hit Erie County, New York — the Buffalo area — the same week

Three rounds of storms in two days

The first storm: a September 2 flash flood warning

The trouble started September 2, when the National Weather Service issued a Flash Flood Warning for central and northeastern Erie County, citing 1 to 2.5 inches of rain already on the ground in spots, with more expected. That warning was set to last until midday but was cancelled around 10:48 a.m. as the immediate danger eased.

The second storm: overnight wind damage and flooding

Overnight into September 3, a separate and more damaging system moved through: wind gusts near 60 mph downed trees and power lines across the city and county, leaving debris scattered on streets and roads. A new Flash Flood Warning covered Erie County from late in the evening of September 2 into the early hours of September 3. By around 7:30 the next morning, the Weather Service had upgraded its alert for Erie County to a full Flood Warning, with storm-band totals near 2 to 3.5 inches reported in the hardest-hit spots and numerous roads shut down by high water. That warning expired shortly before noon the same day, with forecasters saying the heaviest rain had ended and floodwaters were receding, while still urging residents to watch for remaining road closures.

The third storm: an afternoon hail round

By early afternoon, a third and distinct round of storms moved through the Erie and Crawford county area, bringing quarter-size hail and gusts of roughly 60 mph to the southeastern part of the county.

By the morning of September 4, no flash flood or flood warning covered Erie County itself, according to the Weather Service’s active alerts. A warning issued that morning did cover Jefferson County, Ohio, and Allegheny, Washington, Brooke and Hancock counties in Pennsylvania and West Virginia — but that was a separate warning for a different part of the region, not Erie County.

Power outages and the slow climb back

At the peak, outages topped 32,000 customers across the wider Erie area, according to local outage tracking. About 20,000 of those were Penelec customers within Erie County — Penelec put that at roughly 40 percent of all customers in the city of Erie, as of around 7 a.m. that morning. For thousands of Erie residents, that outage landed on the same day schools, the county courthouse and Presque Isle State Park were already shut down because of the storm. The count fell steadily from there: about 14,914 Erie County customers were still without power just after noon, roughly 10,480 by early evening the same day, and by late morning September 4, Penelec’s outage tracker showed only about 76 customers still in the dark, according to local reporting. How much longer restoration took beyond that point is not known.

Schools, courts and Presque Isle closed

The storm damage and outages forced a string of closures on September 3. Erie’s public schools cancelled classes. The Erie County Courthouse — courts and other county offices — shut down for the day. Presque Isle State Park and the Tom Ridge Environmental Center did not open either. No reopening date has been announced for the park or environmental center, and it’s not confirmed whether schools and the courthouse had reopened by September 4.

City officials cited the downed trees, snapped utility poles and blocked roadways in declaring the state of emergency. Whether that declaration is still in effect has not been confirmed.

Not the same storm as Buffalo’s flooding

The same multi-day weather system that soaked Erie, Pennsylvania also produced flash flooding in Erie County, New York — the Buffalo metro area. The National Weather Service’s Buffalo office issued a Flash Flood Warning for Erie and Wyoming counties in New York effective at 10:28 p.m. on September 3, running until 12:45 a.m. on September 4, citing 2 to 3 inches of rainfall. A second warning followed for Erie, Livingston and Wyoming counties, effective 11:53 p.m. September 3 until 2:15 a.m. September 4, citing radar-estimated totals of 2.5 to 3.5 inches.

Streets and basements flooded in Buffalo, Kenmore, Amherst, Cheektowaga and West Seneca as area wastewater treatment plants — already strained from a prior day of rain — were overwhelmed. An investigation by WIVB estimated that roughly 37 million gallons of sewage-mixed stormwater flowed into the Niagara River, Black Rock Canal and Scajaquada Creek over a 24-hour span; that figure has not been independently confirmed by a state or federal regulator.

No injuries or deaths have been reported from either storm — the one in Erie, Pennsylvania or the separate flooding in Erie County, New York.

Even Erie News Now, the Erie, Pennsylvania station covering the story, briefly lost its own power and internet connection during the storm before service was restored.

Timeline

September 2: National Weather Service issues a Flash Flood Warning for central and northeastern Erie County; it is cancelled around 10:48 a.m. as the danger eases
Late evening September 2 into early hours of September 3: a separate, more damaging storm brings gusts near 60 mph, downs trees and power lines, and prompts a new Flash Flood Warning for Erie County
September 3, about 7 a.m.: outages peak at roughly 20,000 Penelec customers in Erie County, about 40% of city of Erie customers
September 3, about 7:30 a.m.: Weather Service upgrades its alert to a full Flood Warning for Erie County
September 3, before noon: the Flood Warning expires as the heaviest rain ends and floodwaters recede
September 3, early afternoon: a third storm brings quarter-size hail and gusts of roughly 60 mph to the southeastern part of Erie and Crawford counties
September 3, evening: about 10,480 Erie County customers remain without power, down from 14,914 just after noon
Night of September 3 into early morning of September 4: the National Weather Service’s Buffalo office issues two Flash Flood Warnings covering Erie, Wyoming and Livingston counties in New York
September 4, late morning: only about 76 Erie County, Pennsylvania customers remain without power

What’s still unknown

A few details remain unsettled: whether the City of Erie’s state of emergency has been lifted, when Presque Isle State Park and the Tom Ridge Environmental Center will reopen, whether schools and the county courthouse have reopened since September 3, and a full accounting of which roads remain closed. Officials had advised residents to treat any intersection with a non-working traffic signal as a four-way stop and to watch for standing water and downed trees in the meantime.