A massive power outage Tuesday night left several Jefferson County communities without electricity for some time.

The outage was sparked by a dead tree that fell onto power lines. Penelec officials said about 200 customers were without power from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.

The largest community affected by the outage was Brookville, where the Brookeville County Jail, Brookville Hospital and two nursing homes were without power.

Penelec officials said many other customers just north of the borough also reported some brief interruptions. The outages also affected the Jefferson County Emergency Management Center, but workers there said they quickly switched to generator power to avoid any interruption in service.

County officials said their Emergency Management Team prepares for power outages like the one on Tuesday. Penelec officials said they work hard to prevent dead trees from endangering power lines, but said recent storms may have weakened some trees.