Thousands lose power in western Washington as storm winds knock out lines
Wind and rain caused widespread outages Saturday night, leaving over 30,000 customers in the dark by midnight.
By Aiko Soto ·
More than 30,000 customers in King County lost electricity just before midnight on Saturday as high winds and rain battered western Washington.
The storm brought down power lines and snapped trees, forcing utility crews to work through the night to restore service. By 11:30 a.m. on Sunday, the number of outages had dropped significantly across the region.
Seattle City Light reported that 6,783 customers in King County remained without power as of 10 a.m. Sunday. That figure had fallen to 4,889 by 11:30 a.m. The utility stated that its crews had restored power for about 80% of the customers initially affected. "We are sending additional crews to the remaining outage sites and working to safely restore power as soon as possible," the company said.
Puget Sound Energy tracked 21,656 customers without power during the peak of the storm last night. As of 10 a.m. Sunday, that number stood at 7,713 and fell to 5,198 by 11 a.m. Snohomish County saw a similar recovery, with its outage map showing 449 customers without power at 10 a.m., down from 9,106 earlier. By 11:30 a.m., only 222 customers in that area were still in the dark. Tacoma Public Utilities reported 1,802 outages around midnight, a number that decreased to just 13 by Sunday morning.
The damage was concentrated in specific parts of the city. Seattle City Light data indicated that the majority of remaining outages were in Capitol Hill, between Madison and Republican streets. At one point on Saturday, crews were actively working on 143 different outages throughout the city. Video captured by FOX 13 showed downed power lines, a streetlight, street signs, and trees lying across Dexter Avenue in Seattle. Residents in South Seattle, including the Burien area, also experienced outages.
Utility officials advised residents to treat downed power lines as live electricity and to use flashlights rather than candles to prevent fires. They recommended keeping refrigerator and freezer doors closed to preserve food, noting that an unopened fridge stays cold for about four hours and a full freezer for about 48 hours. Drivers were cautioned that traffic lights may be out, creating dangerous road conditions.
