Thousands still without power after deadly Washington state storm
By Eric M. Johnson
SEATTLE (Reuters) - Thousands of Washington state residents remained without power on Monday after a storm packing wind gusts of more than 60 miles per hour (100 kph) roared through the broader Seattle area on Saturday, killing two people, authorities said.
Some 23,500 customers were without power in an area north of Seattle that includes Snohomish County and Camano Island in the Puget Sound, according to the Snohomish County Public Utility.
To the south, Seattle City Light estimated some 2,243 of its customers lacked electricity as of Monday afternoon.
Crews were working to restore power after the storm, which caused extensive damage to power lines, poles and trees and at one point left 450,000 customers in the state without electricity.
A 36-year-old father driving with his 3-year-old daughter in Gig Harbor, just west of Tacoma, was killed on Saturday when a tree fell on his car, while the girl was unharmed, local media reported.
Less than two hours later, a falling branch struck and killed a 10-year-old girl in Federal Way, just east of Tacoma, a police dispatcher said.
The Snohomish utility said Saturday's peak of 175,000 outages ties a record for the most customers left without power since a storm in 1993.
"This was a severe and highly unusual storm, especially for this time of year. Wind gusts of over 60 mph, combined with the fact that trees still have leaves and have been stressed by the hot, dry summer, created conditions for substantial damage throughout our service territory," it said.
(Editing by Eric Walsh)
