Update 12:50 pm: According to First Energy's power outage map, power has been restored.

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Around 2,000 customers were without power in Stark County after a substation caught fire early Wednesday morning.

Alliance police tell us a fire at a substation on Oyster Road caused the outages around 4 a.m.

Firefighters put out the flames around 6 a.m.

First Energy reports more than 1,500 customers were without power around 7:20 a.m.

Power outages were reported north of Cambridge Street, as far west as Rockhill Avenue and all points east of the city.

Visit AkronNewsNow.com for the latest information as it becomes available.

FirstEnergy is preparing for any power outages caused by heavy winds and severe weather, offering customers a new online service on smart phones.

"It just gives our customers some flexibility," said Mark Durbin, FirstEnergy spokesman. "Some people are out and about and they can use their smart phone."

During severe weather and emergencies, the maps will feature an alert with links to outage-related news, safety reminders, and other important information.

Customers can view power outages by state, county or zip code using the new "24/7 Power Center" maps. 

The system also offers a new way for customers to report power outages online, but customers can still report power outages by phone.

"Either way, it gets you to the same place. Don't think that you have to call and then follow up with a report on the website," said Durbin.

The interactive maps use color coding to show the number of customers affected by power outages across Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Maryland, New York and West Virginia service areas. It allows customers to easily zoom in to access local outage information from their utility.

Later this year, FirstEnergy will include detailed estimated restoration times during large-scale weather events including text alerts.

Click here to see the "24/7 Power Center" maps. 

A power outage near Chapel Hill Mall in Akron left around 575 customers without power Tuesday morning.

FirstEnergy spokesman Mark Durbin says crews have restored electricity to all of the residents that were without power around 6 a.m.

He says the power outage was caused by a problem with an insulator on one of the poles.

The power outage affected residents near Wade Park Avenue and Alphada Avenue.

Akron police say some traffic lights were out early this morning near the intersection of Brittain Road and Tallmadge Avenue.

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Akron police and Ohio Edison crews brought all electric customers back on after a localized power outage in West Akron.

FirstEnergy tells AkronNewsNow.com that the top of a pole snapped off in the Wallhaven area at about 3 p.m., affecting about 1,800 customers.

Crews returned power to half of those customers within a half-hour, and the remaining customers were restored at around 4:15 p.m.

The outage affected from the eastern edge of the Wallhaven area east, nearly to Highland Square.  Other customers in the Wallhaven area, including the Akron Radio Center - home of AkronNewsNow.com  - and the nearby Acme #1 were not affected.