SEATTLE – The hurricane-strength winds that swept through the Puget Sound region in December will be remembered as the Hanukkah Eve Wind Storm of 2006.

The National Weather Service in Seattle made the name announcement Friday after holding a contest.

More than 5,700 names were nominated, most related to the holiday season, downed trees and power outages, the weather service said.

The name Hanukkah Eve Wind Storm of 2006 was selected by a committee. The Jewish holiday of Hanukkah began at sundown on Dec. 15.

High winds during the night of Dec. 14 and the early morning of Dec. 15 knocked out power to more than 1.5 million people and are blamed for 15 fatalities.

There’s a long tradition of naming windstorms, the weather service said. Other well-known storms include the 1962 Columbus Day Storm, the 1979 Hood Canal Bridge Wind Storm and the Inauguration Day Wind Storm in 1993.