Area swept off its feet

Windstorm wreaks havoc across region

By Jennifer Langston

Herald Writer

Tuesday’s winds toppled cottonwoods, knocked down power lines, closed Everett city blocks and sent Halloween scarecrows flying. The storm, which spawned gusts between 40 and 50 mph in north Snohomish and Island counties, was also expected to dump several inches of snow at elevation levels above 3,500 feet.

About 6,000 households — many near Arlington, Stanwood and Marysville — were still without electricity Tuesday night. More than 30 utility crews were working to fix power lines, most of which were snapped by falling branches.

"We’ve had gusts between 30 and 40 mph. That can cause a lot of damage with all the trees we have in the area," said Mike Thorne, spokesman for the Snohomish County PUD.

At the worst point in the day, 7,500 homes, government offices and schools in Everett and throughout the county experienced outages, he said.

One block of Colby Avenue in Everett was closed off until midafternoon because of flying debris from construction on a bank facade. The wind was blowing masonry and grit, and scaffolding outside the building was wobbling, according to the Everett Police Department.

Lisa Bennett said she was crossing the street in front of the Everett Public Library when a gust literally lifted her off the ground. She landed on the sidewalk, skinning her knees, scratching her jewelry and wondering if her wayward skirt had exposed anything indelicate.

"I’m not exactly skinny," said the worker for a temporary service. "My feet actually left the pavement. … It just picked me up and threw me down."

The scarecrow displays erected for a Halloween contest in Coupeville were a little worse for the wear, said Rita Kuller, president of the Central Whidbey Chamber of Commerce.

"This morning I took a run around town to see how the poor critters were faring," she said. "There are quite a few of them that are asunder."

One contest entry featured a mother scarecrow and her little girl standing side by side on a beach in bikinis. Now they’re toppled over, entwined and mired in the sand, she said.

But some experienced contestants — accustomed to fall winds that seem to hit around Halloween every year — have mastered the art of building sturdy scarecrows.

"There’s some that haven’t flinched. There’s one that has a kite flapping away in the wind … but he’s intact," she said.

The storm, which brought high winds and scattered moisture, was expected to move east out of the area Tuesday night, according to the National Weather Service.

But U.S. 2 at Stevens Pass had already gotten snowfall by afternoon, creating slushy and icy driving conditions. About 2 to 4 inches was expected to accumulate.

A warm front from offshore waters was predicted to bring rain to Western Washington today, with nicer weather following later in the week.

You can call Herald Writer Jennifer Langston at 425-339-3452

or send e-mail to langston@heraldnet.com.

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