Severe storms affected Newberry County on Saturday night, with the city areas getting the brunt of them. The storms have caused widespread outages, with downed trees and power lines throughout the city. Below is a statement released by The Newberry County Sheriff’s Office late Saturday night, and pictured above is a scene from the Circle Drive area of Newberry after the storms:

Sudden storms are causing widespread power outages across the county and numerous trees down. City of Newberry is without power. Power crews are working hard but there is such widespread damage that will cause power to be out for a significant time.

It is highly recommended due to the numbers of trees and power lines down that you not travel and shelter in place. This is a very dangerous situation due to energized lines, darkness, and trees in road. Stay home if at all possible.

All traffic lights are down in the City of Newberry. Remember when traffic lights are down the intersections become FOUR WAY STOPS.

Please do not call 911 for power and cable outages. At present all utility crews are aware of the outages, however as power comes back on you may have localized outages. Utility crews are working as fast as they can under dangerous conditions. Please be patient.

Emergency service crews and SCDOT are working to clear roads.

It is UNKNOWN at this time when power will be restored.