Nov. 20 (UPI) — At least one person is dead and hundreds of thousands of were without power early Wednesday as a powerful bomb cyclone hit the Pacific Northwest and northern California.
The National Weather Service had warned of a once-in-a-decade bomb cyclone hitting Washington, Oregon and northern California starting Tuesday afternoon and continuing through Wednesday morning.
On X, it warned that prolonged heavy rains from an atmospheric river would persist over far northern California into southwest Orgeong into Friday. Damaging winds in excess of 60 mph were to cause power outages and down trees in coastal areas.
Late Tuesday, South County Fire, located in Snohomish County just north of Seattle, said on Facebook that a woman in her 50s had died when a tree, felled by strong winds, toppled onto a homeless encampment.
Fire officials in Puget Sound, located on the northwest coast of Washington, said in a statement two people were injured when a tree fell on a trailer in Maple valley. Both victims had been inside the trailer.
One was swiftly rescued, fire officials said, while the other took about an hour to extricate. Both have since been hospitalized, according to the officials.
The National Weather Service late Tuesday warned of the danger posed by trees in high winds.
“Stay safe by avoiding exterior rooms and windows and by using caution when driving. Prevent damage to your property by trimming loose branches and parking away from trees,” it said on X.
The Fire Department in Bellevue, located east of Seattle, warned of trees “coming down all over the city, with multiple falling onto homes.”
“If you are able, head to the lowest floor you can and stay away from windows. Do not go outside if you can avoid it,” it said on Facebook.
As of 1:20 a.m. PST, more than 700,000 customers in Washington, 26,000 in California and nearly 9,000 in Oregon were without power, according to poweroutage.us.
The power outages prompted the Eatonville School District in Washington to cancel classes on Wednesday.
“Due to widespread power outages, fallen trees, and high winds in some areas, school is canceled on Wednesday,” it said in a statement.