Over sixty thousand people are left without power due to the rough weather
Even though the worst of the storms in New York seem to be dying down, that doesn’t mean the storms are over. Rain, snow and strong winds pass through eight Western states in the US, causing power outages in parts of the country.
Weather conditions
People in the eastern US are still recovering from the winter storm that hit in the week before Christmas. Even though the worst might be over for them, in the western part of the country storms are raging on. In some cities there were gusts of wind of over 100 mph. A gust of 107-mph was recorded in Mount Hood, Oregon and in Washington, a 104-mph gust was reported. Areas of California are dealing with winds of 90 mph. The National Weather Center says on their website that these conditions might last through the weekend.
Danger
Several states on the West Coast are dealing with power outages. Oregon was hit the hardest with seventy percent of the electricity outages occurring there. Washington and California are also dealing with power outages and there have been alerts in eight Western states concerning the winter weather. The states are also dealing with floods, with a record high tide in Olympia, Washington. The water rose up to 18.4 feet, causing several parts of the capital to flood, leaving things like jellyfish on the shores and streets.
Benefit
There is a silver lining. The areas in California that have been suffering from long periods of drought could benefit from the heavy rain- and snowfall. According to the California Department of Water Resources, the source of water that is critical for the area and has been suffering due to drought, was currently running over 150% of the usual levels. The rough weather could be a relief for the ‘Golden State’ expecting rainfall that could add up to seven inches total.
Also Read: Very dangerous: this why you should never do the dishes during a thunder storm
Source: CNN, CBS News, National Weather Service, USA Today News | Image: Unsplash, Daniel Lerman