HOULTON, Maine — A brief but powerful storm that hit Houlton on Wednesday, May 26, left the town without power and downed several trees.
The storm passed through shortly before 5 p.m. and featured strong winds and heavy rain. It ended almost as quickly as it began, but was enough to cause damage around the town, with at least two large trees falling, one on Main Street and another on Hartford Street.
Houlton Water Company, which supplies power to the town via a line from New Brunswick, said it expected the outage to last around three hours before power could be fully restored to the town. Houlton Fire Department as well as Public Works were out helping clear debris from fallen trees.
“As always please be aware and do not approach downed lines,” the company posted on its social media site. “We will keep you posted as new information arises.”
A fallen tree located at 129 Main Street in Houlton, after a brief but powerful rainstorm which occurred on May 26. (Alexander MacDougall | Houlton Pioneer Times)
James Sinko, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Caribou, said that NWS had been tracking the storm earlier in the day. The service’s weather station at Houlton International Airport had also gone out, but had been restored by 6:20 p.m.
Sinko said information was too early to determine whether the incident constituted a “microburst” storm event, where sinking air within a thunderstorm creates strong winds that can cause extensive damage. The NWS had not yet received notice of the storm damage prior to being contacted by the Houlton Pioneer Times.
Based on the downing of trees and observations from the airport station, Sinko estimated that winds reached as high as 50 miles per hour during the event.
“We wouldn’t know at this point whether it was a microburst,” Sinko said. “We had noticed our station at the airport had gone out, but we hadn’t heard anything about the damage.”
