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With hurricane-force wind gusts, a “once in a decade” bomb cyclone struck the northwest United States and portions of Canada early on Wednesday.
Leaving hundreds of thousands without power in British Columbia, California, and Washington state and at least one person dead.
Strong winds are toppling trees in Seattle and the surrounding areas; some of them are falling on homes and endangering lives.
Shortly after 7 p.m. PT, a big tree fell on a homeless camp in Lynnwood, north of Seattle, killing a lady in her 50s, the South County Fire Department informed CNN.
According to BC Hydro’s website, around 140,000 customers in British Columbia were without power in the early hours of Wednesday.
while over 650,000 customers in Washington were without electricity. In California, more than 24,000 people were without power as of midnight PT.
Significant wind gusts have been recorded by the National Weather Service throughout the area, including off the coast of British Columbia, where winds at the South Brooks Buoy were reaching 101 mph.
In Washington state, gusts of 72 to 77 mph were seen at Crystal Mountain and Sunrise-Mount Rainier, inland southeast of Seattle, and Cape Elizabeth on the Olympic Peninsula.
“Out there, things are bad. The Bellevue, east of Seattle, fire department issued a Severe Weather Safety notice on Facebook, saying.
“Trees are falling all over the city, with multiple falling onto homes.” Go to the lowest floor you can and avoid windows if at all possible. If at all possible, stay indoors.
In Lake Stevens, Snohomish County, north of Seattle, CNN was able to capture videos showing several fallen trees on power lines.
Snohomish Regional Fire and Rescue reported that “many trees and power lines down.” Puget Sound Fire reported that two individuals were saved when a tree fell on their trailer in Maple Valley, a community southeast of Seattle.
While the second patient took an hour for firemen to remove, the first patient was released swiftly. Both patients were sent to a hospital in the area.
CNN affiliate KIRO reports that on Tuesday night, an Amtrak train struck a fallen tree close to a junction in Stanwood, north of Seattle.
According to KIRO, the event rendered the train unusable, although none of the 47 passengers were hurt. CNN contacted Amtrak for further details.
Due to the storm’s effects, a number of school districts in western Washington will either shut or postpone classes on Wednesday.
“All school buildings will be closed on Wednesday, November 20th, and all after-school activities have been canceled due to widespread power outages, fallen trees, and high winds in some areas,” the Eatonville School District, which is 60 miles south of Seattle, said on social media.
Late Tuesday, gusts of over 70 mph were recorded offshore and along the coast in western Oregon, with winds ranging from 30 to 50 mph.
High peaks in Humboldt hit 80 mph, while gusts offshore in Northern California reached 60 mph.
Parts of the Pacific Northwest and Northern California may experience feet of mountain snow, hurricane-force wind gusts, and more than a month’s worth of rain when the strong “bomb cyclone” combines with an atmospheric river.
The storm system gained the nickname “bomb cyclone” on Tuesday due to its quick intensification, a phenomenon known as “bombogenesis.”
For its location, a storm that only happens “about once every ten years,” this was one of the strongest on record, according to the Medford, Oregon, National Weather Service.
During the winter, bomb cyclones are powerful storms that bring with them tremendous winds and a lot of snow.
In order to extract substantial rainfall and mountain snowfall in the Pacific Northwest and Northern California.
This bomb cyclone will cooperate with an atmospheric river, which is a lengthy plume of water vapor that flows through the atmosphere like a river.
Throughout the week and into the weekend, the two will stall near the coast and pound the region with dangerous weather.
In a 48-hour period, parts of northwest California may get 16 inches or more of rain. According to the local meteorological service, the northern San Francisco Bay area, mostly north of the Golden Gate Bridge, is predicted to have more than a month’s worth of rain.
This amount of rainfall is predicted to result in major river floods, debris flow on roads, and urban flooding.
In northwest California, the most intense rainfall is predicted to start on Wednesday and peak on Thursday.
According to the WPC, there is a rare level 4 of 4 high danger of flooding rains on Thursday, and a level 3 of 4 risk is in force for Wednesday.
The significance of these elevated hazards cannot be overstated. According to WPC research, they cause over 80% of all flood-related damage and 40% of all flood-related fatalities, although being issued on an average of less than 4% of days year.
On Wednesday, there could be three to six inches of rain, with up to eight inches in some places. Rainfall on Thursday may equal or surpass Wednesday’s totals, particularly in the high-risk area.
In regions with higher elevations, where winter weather advisories are in effect, heavy snowfall is anticipated.
Parts of the Washington Cascades are under blizzard warnings, meaning that through Wednesday morning, snowfall exceeding one foot and gusts of up to sixty miles per hour are likely.
Travel may be extremely challenging or perhaps impossible. The National Weather Service office in Seattle issued a warning that strong winds might seriously harm power lines and trees.
Through Wednesday, the Cascades and the northern Sierra Nevada could receive one to four feet of snow. In the event of snowfall, Interstate 5 and Highways 31, 36, 66, 89, 97, and 140 may become impassable.
Although conditions will continue windy throughout the Pacific Northwest on Wednesday, strong winds peaked Tuesday over much of the area as the bomb cyclone started to dissipate.
Lighter rains may persist into next week, but conditions will begin to improve by the weekend.