Thousands Lose Power After Power Lines Fall, Catch Fire In Hoboken

HOBOKEN, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- Power lines crashed into the street, damaging a car and plunging thousands of people into darkness in New Jersey.

Thousands were left without power in Hoboken after downed power lines sparked a fire that spread to a car on Madison Street near Seventh Street. A water line was also busted by the fire's extreme heat.

"Popping and sizzling; it was scary, very scary," resident Ashlee Kim said.

"I saw huge sparks flying from the corner, it was obvious that a power line had fallen, it was going on for some time," said Vito Formica, who captured the scene on his smartphone.

He thinks the weather is to blame, CBS2's Dave Carlin reported.

"There were very strong wind gusts that picked up right away," Formica said. "I noticed that all the trees were being kicked around outside, it was definitely due to the winds."

The scary scenes ignited a short while before sunset and as skies went dark, so did about 2,000 homes and businesses in this area.

"It flashed for a little bit and about an hour later it just went out for about 45 minutes," said resident Drew Pronko.

No one was hurt.

Property damage includes heavy fire damage to a car, which was towed away to give PSE&G and water crews room to make repairs and get the power back on by 9 p.m. for most customers.

Only a handful of customers were still without power at 11 p.m.