Thousands are without power in the Baltimore area Wednesday morning after a hard-hitting storm brought heavy rain, damaging winds and flooding.

As of 2:45 p.m. Wednesday, 694 active outages were affecting over 8,910 customers, according to the Baltimore Gas and Electric outage map.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has these tips to stay safe in the event your power goes out:

  • To prevent carbon monoxide poisoning, use generators, pressure washers, grills and similar items outdoors only. Generators should be used at least 20 feet away from your home.
  • Identify and throw away food that may not be safe to eat.
  • Check with local authorities to be sure your water is safe.
  • In hot weather, stay cool and drink plenty of fluids to prevent heat-related illness.
  • Avoid downed power lines, if a power line falls on a car, you should stay inside the vehicle.

How to Report an Outage with BGE

Banner staff contributed to this report.

WJZ is a media partner of The Baltimore Banner.