Downed tree takes out power lines in Chapel Hill

A downed tree took out power lines in Chapel Hill, leaving hundreds of customers without power Wednesday morning.

Tuesday around 10:30 p.m., a spokesperson for the town said a fallen tree knocked down power lines on E. Franklin Street at S. Elliott Road. The intersection is closed.

Chapel Hill police sent out an alert Wednesday at 4:50 a.m.:

E. Franklin Street is closed at Elliott Road as Duke Energy works to repair power lines brought down by a fallen tree at around 10:30 last night.

Due to a power outage, traffic signals are out along E. Franklin Street between Eastgate Crossing and Hillsborough Street. The Town of Chapel Hill is working to bring generator power to affected intersections. In the meantime, remember to treat intersections without power as a four-way stop.

Community members should take Fordham Boulevard to Highway 54 to detour to the downtown area.

There have been no reported injuries.

Duke Energy is on scene working on repairs.

As of Wednesday at 3 a.m., more than 2,000 customers were without power in Orange County. More than 800 customers were still without power, as of 5 a.m.

The estimated time of restoration is noon, according to the Duke Energy website.