RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) – Strong storms left a path of downed trees and power outages Thursday across central North Carolina.
A Severe Thunderstorm Watch was issued for most of the region through 10 p.m.
(Courtesy of Kendal Dennis) 
(Courtesy of the NCDOT via Twitter) 
(Courtesy of Chapel Hill Fire Dept.) 
(Courtesy of Chapel Hill Fire Dept.) 
(Courtesy of Chapel Hill Fire Dept.) 
(Courtesy of Chapel Hill Fire Dept.) 
(Courtesy of Jessica Provost) 
(Courtesy of Chris Cooper) 
(Courtesy of Eric Payne) 
Chapel Hill storm damage (CBS 17)
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Sporadic Severe Thunderstorm Warnings were issued for Wake, Durham and surrounding counties as lines of storms passed through.
Heavy rains pummeled areas like Chapel Hill and Wake Forest. Chapel Hill saw some of the worst damage in the Triangle.
In Halifax County, two lanes are closed on Interstate 95 northbound. The closure, which an alert attributed to a road obstruction, is near NC-561 and about four miles north of Exit 160.
Duke Energy’s outage map showed thousands without power north and west of the Triangle.
Holly Park Shopping Center near the intersection of Wake Forest Road and Interstate-440 was without power at 4 p.m. before it was later restored.
“Our crews are out working and restoring power,” said Duke Energy spokesperson Jeff Brooks Thursday night. “There’s more than 1,000 individual outages we’ll have to address across the state. About half of those are here in the Triangle and in the border counties north of here. So, a lot of damage in this area.”
Brooks urged those who want to report a downed power line to stay away from it.
There were around 9,700 customers without power across the entire state as of 7 a.m. Friday. Around 1,000 of those were in the Triangle area.
Click here to see Duke Energy’s outage map
The same storms affecting the Triangle knocked out power to customers in the Triad.
