COLDWATER, MI (WTVB) – Thursday’s blustery winds that whipped across Branch County are still making it a breezy beginning to this Friday the 13th but the 35-40 mph gusts have finally subsided. All of the scattered power outages across the county have been fixed according to Consumers Energy and local law enforcement agencies have reported no injuries although some minor property damage occurred with the howling weather conditions.
The Branch County Road Commission was kept busy removing whole trees in some isolated locations along with large limbs and branches. Fire departments were on alert as well to check on arching wires that sparked a few small blazes.
It could have been a lot worse that it was but the storm front that tossed off tornadoes and snow storms to the west had lost some of its punch by the time it crossed Lake Michigan and came on shore. That and the fact that the leaves had already fallen, reducing wind resistance, sapped the potential for real disaster. It was however dangerous for semi-truck drivers and other high profile vehicles traveling north south routes like I-69.
