Black Friday meant black out for much of Austintown.
According to Ohio Edison, an equipment failure knocked out a transmission line around noon causing a widespread power outage to about 5,000 customers.
It's about the last thing shoppers expected as they hunted for deals on the busiest shopping day of the year.
"I was planning on doing some shopping," says resident Patrick Marciano. "And we were planning on having a dinner for my son which is falling apart as we speak."
While many businesses and stores closed all together because of the power outage, some stayed open as long as their customers paid cash.
Our cameras caught a few customers as they came in and adjusted their eyes to the dark surroundings.
"They're a little shocked by the store just being dark and not having any power," says Gary Markulin of Rite Aid. "But they're appreciative we're still open."
Two hours after the outage began, the lights came back on. Chuck Eddy of Bob and Chuck Eddy's Chrysler, Jeep Dodge says business still hummed along during the outage. The dealership sold two cars while the lights were out. Still, the impact of the outage was felt.
"It was pitch black at our accounting office so we had sent a few people home," says Eddy. "You've got mechanics, our service department gets very dark. Our lifts are electric so cars are up, cars are down. You really can't do anything. So you go into a complete hold until the electricity come back on."
Now that the power is back on, it's business as usual in Austintown, with great deals awaiting shoppers!
