PATCO to resume service at 1 p.m. on a limited schedule

PATCO says it will resume train service at 1 p.m. after a storm knocked out service during last night’s commute.

PATCO spokesman Mike Williams says trains will run every 20 minutes (even during rush hour) until midnight when normal schedules will resume. 

The power went out shortly after 6:15 p.m. last night somewhere between Camden and Linden. This left some passengers stuck on train for upwards of 45 minutes, just as the National Weather Service issued a ‘Seek Shelter’ warning as severe thunderstorms were passing over. 

Passengers were kept on the train, but Williams says two PATCO police officers did board the train to ensure everybody was ok. 

PATCO is a passenger train service that connects Philadelphia and its South Jersey suburbs.

In New Jersey, nearly 210,000 homes and businesses were without electricity Wednesday morning after the storms, some packing 75 mph winds, thundered through the region.

Gloucester, Camden and Salem counties were among the hardest hit areas. Complete utility restoration could take several days.

The NWS is investigating whether a tornado formed in parts of Gloucester County. Officials did confirm a small tornado briefly touched down in Wrentham, Massachusetts, near the Rhode Island border.

Strong winds ripped off part of the Deptford Mall’s exterior. More than 30 animals were left stranded when a pet shop roof fell in in Gibbstown.

Parents and students scrambled when the storms formed as the Egg Harbor Township High School graduation ended.

There are no reports of injuries.