Eighty-seven homes and businesses in Columbiana County were still in the dark early Thursday, three hours after an electrical fire in Middletown Township.

Firefighters from Rogers and Negley were called out near Mill Rock Auto Salvage on Route 154 just after 1:30 a.m. to investigate what was reported as a transformer fire that threatened to spread to the woods.

As the fire was being put out, dispatchers contacted Ohio Edison to send a repair crew to restore power. The utility estimated

 

  FirstEnergy

 

that power would be restored at 5 a.m.