Wind storm knocks out power to thousands, closes or delays schools
Published 7:58 am Wednesday, December 17, 2025
EVERETT — The latest winter storm of the last two weeks roared into Snohomish County on Tuesday night, knocking out power to thousands, closing or delaying schools and causing more flood concerns for residents already beleaguered by historic flooding.
As of 2 p.m. Wednesday, more than 31,000 customers were without power in Snohomish County. Around 5:30 a.m. Wednesday, 63,700 customers were without power, according to Kellie Stickney, a spokesperson at the Snohomish County Public Utilities District.
Some outages could last through Thursday
Snohomish Public Utility District has 34 crews out in Snohomish County, with mutual aid crews from Douglas County and Grant County public utility districts on the way to aid in restoration efforts, Stickney said.
Walking along a closed portion of Marine Drive just south of Stanwood, where Snohomish crews had been working since early morning on multiple downed power lines, she said she expected a “significant portion” of the outages to come back online by the end of the day Wednesday.
The utility district said some power outages will remain through Thursday, possibly into Saturday, Stickney said.
“This is a unique situation where just all the ground saturation and then getting those high winds gusting up to 60 mph. It just creates a lot,” she said.
Flood warnings extended for Snohomish, Skykomish
The National Weather Service recorded a wind gust of 46 mph at the Arlington Airport on Tuesday night. Whidbey Island saw gusts of 71 mph, meteorologist Kayla Mazurkiewicz said on Wednesday.
“We will have just some unsettled conditions today,” she said. “Some scattered showers throughout the area, especially in Everett but, generally, we should be winding down a bit. It will be a little quieter, and the wind has subsided.”
Additional rainfall has triggered the weather service to extend flood warnings for the Snohomish River at Snohomish, which broke records last week, and the Skykomish River near Gold Bar.
“Even 6 inches of fast-moving flood water can knock you off your feet and a depth of 2 feet will float your car,” the statement said. “Be especially cautious at night when it is harder to recognize the dangers of flooding.”
At 1 p.m. Wednesday, the Snohomish River was above the moderate flood mark at 27.33 feet. The weather service is predicting the river will crest at 28.04 feet at 5 p.m. Wednesday before gradually falling, reaching below the action level mark of 20 feet 8 a.m. Saturday.
The Skykomish River fell below the minor flooding mark of 15 feet at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday. The weather service predicts the river will continue to fall, hovering around the action mark of 12.2 feet until Friday at 4 a.m.
The National Weather Service predicts the Everett area to get rain showers Wednesday, with a high of 48 degrees. More rain is expected tonight, with wind gusts up to 23 mph.
Gold Bar is forecasted to see rain with possible snow Wednesday, with wind gusts of 20 mph and a high near 44 degrees. More rain and snow mix expected Wednesday night, according to the National Weather Service.
Stanwood could see a chance of rain Wednesday, with a high of 50 degrees. Wind gusts could reach 22 mph Wednesday, with gusts getting up to 28 mph Wednesday night.
Snohomish County PUD
Wednesday morning, Snohomish County PUD crews were in the field, Stickney said. Mutual aid crews are also coming from public utility districts in Douglas and Grant counties.
The most significant damage was in the Stanwood-Camano area, Stickney said. Marine Drive, south of Stanwood, was expected to be closed for at least 36 hours as there are several transmission poles that are down in the roadway, she said.
Tree limbs and debris blocking access to areas where work is needed are the biggest challenges to making repairs, Stickney said.
The PUD is asking residents to respect road closure signs to allow crews to complete repair work, Stickney said. From 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday, the public utility will have staff available at Camano Commons Marketplace, located at 848 N. Sunrise Blvd. in Camano, to answer questions and help residents charge electronic devices.
Eliza Aronson: 425-339-3434; eliza.aronson@heraldnet.com; X: @ElizaAronson.
Eliza’s stories are supported by the Herald’s Environmental and Climate Reporting Fund.
Michael Henneke: 425-339-3431; michael.henneke@heraldnet.com; X: @ihenpecked
Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.
