A major storm hit the northwest United States on Tuesday night, lashing the region with strong winds and rain and causing widespread power outages and downed trees that killed at least one person.
The Meteorological Prediction Center issued risk alerts for excessive rain until Friday and hurricane windsas the strongest atmospheric river (a large plume of moisture) California and the Pacific Northwest have seen this season overwhelms the region. The storm system is considered a “bomb cyclone”, which occurs when a cyclone intensifies rapidly.
Fallen trees hit homes and covered roads in northwest Washington. In Lynnwood, Washington, a woman was killed Tuesday night when a large tree fell on a homeless encampment, South County Fire said in a statement on X. In Seattle, a tree fell on a vehicle, temporarily trapping a woman. person inside, the Seattle Fire Department reported. The agency later said the person was in stable condition.
“Trees are falling all over the city and on houses,” the Bellevue fire department, about 10 miles east of Seattle, posted on the social platform X. “If you can, go to the lowest floor and stay away.” of the windows. Don’t go out if you can help it.”
On Wednesday morning, more than 600,000 homes in Washington state were reported to be without power on poweroutage.us. But the number of power outage reports fluctuated wildly overnight, likely due in part to various weather and utility agencies having difficulties reporting the storm due to internet outages and other technical problems. It was unclear whether that figure was accurate. More than 15,000 were without power in Oregon and nearly 19,000 in California.
At 8:00 p.m., the maximum wind speed was recorded in Canadian waters, where gusts of 163 km/h (101 mph) off the coast of Vancouver Island, according to the National Weather Service in Seattle. Along the Oregon coast, there were wind gusts of up to 127 km/h (79 mph) Tuesday night, according to the National Weather Service in Medford, Oregon, while a wind speed of 124 km/h (77 mph) was recorded at Mount Rainier in Washington.
Winds expected to increase in western Washington overnightthe weather service said.
The National Weather Service warned people on the West Coast about the danger of trees during high winds, posting on X: “Stay safe by avoiding outside rooms and windows and using caution when driving.”
In Northern California, flood and high wind warnings were issued, with up to 8 inches of rain forecast for parts of the San Francisco Bay, North Coast and Sacramento Valley. They were expected dangerous flash floodsrock slides and debris flows, according to the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center.
A winter storm warning was issued for the northern Sierra Nevada above 3,500 feet (1,066 meters), where 15 inches (28 centimeters) of snow could fall in two days. Wind gusts could exceed 120 kilometers per hour (75 miles per hour) in mountainous areas, forecasters said.
The National Weather Service issued a flood alert for parts of southwestern Oregon through Friday night, while strong winds and seas halted a ferry route in northwest Washington between Port Townsend and Coupeville.
A was issued blizzard warning for most waterfalls in Washington, including Mount Rainier National Park, starting Tuesday afternoon, with up to 30 centimeters of snow and wind gusts of up to 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour), according to the service Seattle Weather. Transit through the passes could be difficult, if not impossible.
(with information from AP)
