The sunny conditions experienced across the Pioneer Valley on Friday changed abruptly in the evening when thunderstorms rumbled through, bringing down trees and power lines in several communities, including Northampton, Hadley and Amherst.
The National Weather Service had called for scattered “strong to severe,” thunderstorms Friday afternoon and into the evening across western Massachusetts.
The storm knocked out power at the Hadley police station as well as the Hadley Department of Public Works for at least two hours, forcing both offices to operate on emergency generators for a portion of the evening, Sgt. Mitchell Kuc said.
“We had numerous areas of town affected,” he said.
Trees fell on Rocky Hill Road, Middle Street, Mill Valley Road and North Maple Street, Kuc said. Public works crews had cleared the trees by 10 p.m. Friday.
The only area that was not yet cleared by that time was Spruce Hill Road, although crews continued to work on the scene through the evening, Kuc said.
In Amherst, trees were down on Amity and Gray streets and public works crews were still clearing them late Friday night.
Meanwhile in Northampton, downed trees blocked Kennedy Road and Marshall Street, halting traffic and bringing down several utility lines. Both areas were cleared by 10 p.m., police said.
National Grid reported it had no power outages in Hampshire County as of 11 p.m. Friday.
More thunderstorms are forecast for Saturday, according to the National Weather Service, which warned of strong winds and possible hail.
Michael Majchrowicz can be reached at mmajchrowicz@gazettenet.com.