UDPATE: Sunday 12:00 p.m.
More than 250 households remain without power at noon on Sunday.
UPDATE -- Saturday 11:25 a.m.
More than 1,300 Dominion customers remain without power in Rockbridge County as of 11:25 a.m. Power is expected to be restored between 6 p.m. and 10 p.m.
ORIGINAL STORY
A severe thunderstorm moved through downtown Lexington Friday night, downing numerous trees and power lines and leaving large swaths of Rockbridge County without power.
A tree fell across South Main Street near Oak Grove Cemetery, smashing the windows out of a truck parked outside White Rhino MMA & BJJ. Luckily, no one was inside the vehicle. Police blocked off the street Friday night. Crews had cleared the tree by Saturday afternoon.
Lexington Prescription Center owner Jeff Goldstein said he was driving down South Main Street when he heard the tree snap behind him.
"There was a car behind me, I heard a crack and a tree went down," Goldstein said. That tree didn't appear to have damaged any other vehicles.
A massive oak tree, historically known as the Preston Oak and thought to be at least 385 years old, was entirely uprooted at Oak Grove Cemetery and fell, toppling historic gravestones. Other fallen branches damaged other parts of the cemetery including some fencing.
On McDowell Street, a tree crashed through the attic of a house where crews were still working to remove it Saturday afternoon. Thankfully, the residents weren't home at the time.
On Nelson Street, traffic lights went dark after fierce winds whipped through town, leaving the streets littered with debris.
Ann Fuller, who lived in Florida for 30 years, told the News-Gazette on Facebook that she and her husband were having dinner at The Palms when the storm hit.
"It looked like a tropical storm moving through," Fuller wrote. "Our drive home looked like the aftermath of a Category 1 hurricane. We know what that looks like."
Near the Lexington Municipal Pool, neighbors said they heard a transformer explode after heavy wind and rain. Homes in the area were without power.
"I saw the really heavy swirling winds and the standing water. The lights started flickering around 6 p.m.," Brandon Johnson said. "We've been out since then."
More than 3,000 Dominion Energy customers were without power as of 8 p.m. Friday. Crews estimated that it might be overnight before power is restored.
