Roughly 2,500 Duke Energy customers in Butler County lost power Monday night after severe thunderstorms tore through West Chester Township, Liberty Township and surrounding communities with wind gusts up to 60 mph.

The Butler County outages were part of a larger regional hit. At the storm's peak around 9 p.m., nearly 15,000 Duke Energy customers across Ohio and Kentucky were in the dark, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer, which cited the utility's outage map. By 11 p.m., more than 9,000 remained without power regionwide, WLWT reported.

The National Weather Service office in Wilmington had issued a Severe Thunderstorm Warning for Butler and Warren counties Monday evening, citing 60 mph wind gusts and pea-sized hail as the primary threats. The NWS said the storm complex was expected to move south from the Great Lakes region between 6 p.m. and midnight, with the greatest threat in western Ohio areas including Butler County.

Falling tree branches brought down power lines along Stahlheber Road in Butler County, the Journal-News reported.

Local 12 Chief Meteorologist John Gumm posted video from reporter David Winter on X on Tuesday, showing storm activity in West Chester Monday evening.

@JohnGumm: "Storms blow through West Chester Monday evening. See any damage where you are?"

Duke Energy said in a statement posted to its outage website Monday evening that crews were ready to respond "as soon as conditions safely allow" and warned that restoration times could be extended in the hardest-hit areas. The utility urged residents to stay away from downed power lines.

By Tuesday morning, power had been restored to most customers, though hundreds remained without service as of midday Tuesday, the Journal-News reported.

It was the second significant storm in a week. A July 21 system caused tornado damage in Clermont County and flash flooding on Cincinnati's East Side.

What residents should know: The NWS forecast calls for rain to clear early Tuesday with pleasant conditions returning by Wednesday. Residents can report a Duke Energy outage by texting OUT to 57801, calling 800-543-5599, or using the Duke Energy mobile app. The live outage map is available at outagemap.duke-energy.com.