PP&L, Inc., is in the final stages of restoring power to customers left without electric service by a series of severe storms and tornadoes that cut a path of destruction across eastern and central Pennsylvania over the past week.

As of 5 p.m., a few customers remain without power in the Factoryville area north of Scranton, the Pecks Pond area of Pike County and in the Shamokin-Mount Carmel area because of damage from the recent storms.

"We expect to complete cleanup this evening of known power outages from the storms," said Robert M. Geneczko, PP&L, Inc., vice president-Power Delivery.

"Our line crews and dozens of PP&L, Inc., support people in our emergency organization have worked nonstop under adverse conditions to repair extensive damage to our power lines and equipment as quickly as possible," he added.

He also credited support from electric companies in New Jersey, Virginia and Pennsylvania — as well as several electrical contracting and tree trimming firms — for speeding the restoration effort. Those additional crews have returned to their home areas.

Nearly 200,000 PP&L, Inc., customers, about 16 percent of the company's total, were without power because of the storms that hit Friday (5/29), Sunday (5/31), Monday (6/1) and Tuesday (6/2).

"It was one of the worst series of summer storms we have experienced, and we appreciate the patience and understanding our customers have shown," Geneczko said. "Damage to our power lines and equipment was widespread. In some areas, we had to rebuild lines completely."

The hardest hit areas were the Poconos, the Scranton area, the Susquehanna Valley and southern Lancaster County.

PP&L, Inc., provided dry ice to customers in parts of the Poconos and the Quarryville area of Lancaster County to help them preserve food in their refrigerators until power could be restored.

"Working with state and local emergency management officials, we tried to make sure customers got through this situation with as little disruption of their lives as possible," Geneczko explained.