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Thousands without power after 68-mph wind gusts blow through the area

Corpus Christi peaked at 14,000 power outages Thursday night.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — If you weren’t outside last night, you may not have felt the winds, but you certainly heard how strong they were. 

Those strong winds caused more than 10,000 power outages across the city that resulted in closures at Flour Bluff ISD and Seashore Charter Schools.

Trees were snapped in half and uprooted. 

Residents from Petronila to Corpus Christi felt the strong winds' aftermath. 

AEP-Texas crews said they have been working through the night to help restore power lines. 

David Galvan, of Galvan Roofing and Construction, said after nights like the one the city experienced Thursday, their phones start ringing off the hook.

"A regular day we may get 8,9,10 calls in a day to go out and check on their properties, and everything else," he said. "And you can probably triple that whenever we get storms like wind events."  

The city saw wind gusts up to 68 miles per hour.

"The phone usually starts ringing because people will start seeing shingles in their front yard," he said. "And when they start seeing that they get a little nervous."

At 12:01 a.m. Friday, Corpus Christi peaked at 14,000 outages. 

AEP-Texas spokesman Omar Lopez said the energy company was able to restore power to many customers overnight.

"Almost every single power outage we've seen in the last 24 hours has been the result of high winds," he said.

The city also saw many downed power lines, which always hold the potential for danger.

"A downed power line -- please consider it dangerous and energized," Lopez said. "Even if it's not, assume that it's dangerous and energized."

Galvan said it's better to be proactive vs. reactive when it comes to your home.

"It's better to be safe than sorry," he said. 

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