Bomb Cyclone Crushing Washington: Outages and Multiple Fatalities

A powerful atmospheric bomb cyclone struck Washington state last night (November 19, 2024), bringing severe winds, heavy snow, and widespread destruction.

Bomb Cyclone Hits Washington, Causing Widespread Damage and Power Outages

The atmospheric bomb cyclone, which originated off the west coast of the United States, has had huge impacts on both urban and rural areas, causing power outages, downed trees, and multiple tragic fatalities.

The city of Bellevue was hit particularly hard last night. A dramatic 16-second video showing a tree collapsing onto a tree has been circulating online. The video shows branches flying through the night air before a large tree falls onto power lines and sparks a large violent burst of electricity. See the video at the bottom of this article.

Residents in Bellevue, particularly the Lakemont area, described the storm as one of the worst they had ever experienced. Eldridge Recasner, a local resident, tweeted that the bomb cyclone caused severe damage to the region and expected power outages to last for several days. "Never seen it this bad in Bellevue, that Bomb Cyclone tore up the Lakemont area of Bellevue,” Recasner wrote, sharing images of the devastation near Lakemont Blvd and Cougar Mountain Way.

By Wednesday morning, reports from PowerOutage.us showed that nearly 500,000 people across Washington still had no power, with the number fluctuating throughout the day as crews worked to restore service. As of early Wednesday, power was still out for many residents in Seattle and surrounding areas, with authorities warning it could take several days to fully restore service to customers.

In northwest Washington, falling trees struck homes, causing widespread damage. Tragically, two people have lost their lives due to the storm's fury. In Lynnwood, a large tree fell onto a homeless encampment, killing a woman. South County Fire confirmed the fatality late Tuesday. In Bellevue, another tree fell onto a home, killing a woman, according to fire officials.

As the storm continued its march across the region, heavy snow persisted in the Cascades, and northern California also faced blizzard-like conditions. Forecasters warned that travel at pass level would be nearly impossible due to snowfall rates of up to 3 inches per hour and winds gusting to 65 mph. With conditions expected to continue, emergency crews urged residents to stay off the roads and prepare for more disruptions.