Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Storm brings down trees, powerlines in Northwest
Trees and power lines snapped Saturday as a powerful storm bearing the remnants of a Pacific typhoon hit the Northwest.
Tens of thousands of people were without power in Oregon and Washington on Saturday as the storm made landfall after gathering intensity off the coast. The National Weather Service said winds gusted above 50 mph in the Portland area and that the strongest winds would hit Seattle from about 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
“We’ve definitely seen a good round of strong wind, with gusts along the coast anywhere from 60 mph to 80 mph in some of the more exposed parts, and 50 to 60 mph in the Portland area,” said Matthew Cullen, a meteorologist with the agency. “There’s scattered damage.”
Emergency crews reported trees and power lines down throughout the region. The Tualatin Valley Fire and Rescue posted a photograph on Facebook of a tree that crushed the new car and part of the home of a family in North Plains, Oregon, near Portland. The Washington Department of Transportation said trees came down on Interstate 5 near Olympia, blocking a lane.
No injuries were immediately reported Saturday.
The storm brought heavy rain and wind from northern California to Washington state.
The Quinault Indian Nation, on the coast of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula, fretted that the storm would bring a swell that would breach the sea wall that separates its main village from the Pacific Ocean, but the wall was holding Saturday amid 30-foot seas, the tribe said.
The ocean has breached the sea wall twice in recent years, bringing extensive flooding. The tribe is working to relocate the village to higher ground due to the rising sea-level from global warming and the risk of a tsunami.