Three killed, 250000 customers without power after Washington state storms

“Given the typical ratio of power customers to actual people, this means at least 1 million people were affected by power outages in Washington alone”, said meteorologist Nick Wiltgen.

Police said a woman in her 50s was killed Tuesday when a tree toppled in Spokane, and another died when a tree fell on her vehicle southwest of Spokane.

Many residents in the Inland Northwest are waking up in the dark Wednesday morning, following Tuesday’s historic wind storm.

Governor Jay Inslee declared a state of emergency Wednesday afternoon for Washington. A man died when a tree crushed his vehicle as he was driving in Snohomish County, authorities said.

The National Weather Service has forecast rain and wind for much of the week (see video that leads off this article for forecast details).

“This is the largest crisis Avista has experienced in the company’s 126-year history”, the company said in a news release.

Puget Sound Energy, which supplies customers in parts of Seattle and its suburbs, said fewer than 30,000 customers remain without power, down from a peak of 220,000 customers.

The utility said customers could be without power for up to five days as crews worked to restore services.

It added that an estimated 700 miles of overhead power lines had been damaged by the storm.

In Portland, an 80-year-old woman spent the night trapped in bed after a tree fell on her home and missed her by inches during the wind storm.

The Cheney and Spokane campuses of Eastern Washington University closed Tuesday afternoon because of high winds.

The National Weather Service says Wednesday’s winds are caused by the jet stream interacting with the mountains. That number had dropped to about 11,000 by Thursday morning, and the utility said most customers would regain power by the end of the day.

King County, home to Seattle, reported severe flooding on the Snoqualmie River, moderate flooding on the Green River and minor flooding on the Cedar River.

Two women were rescued on Wednesday evening by firefighters and police officers after they ignored a road closure and drove into standing water near Bellingham.

In Spokane, emergency management officials issued a shelter-in-place warning, as wind gusts reached over 70 miles per hour.

Strong winds and an extended downpour caused fewer problems in OR, but roughly 7,000 Portland General Electric customers remain without power in the Portland area.