In the Pacific Northwest, a rare severe weather event occurred Wednesday. Cities along the Interstate 5 corridor, including Portland, Oregon, and Seattle, were hit by powerful thunderstorms.
Forecasters had issued warnings about the possibility of tornadoes, destructive wind gusts, and huge hail throughout the area.
The threat prompted forecasters to issue the first-ever Severe Thunderstorm Watch for Seattle and the highest tornado threat on record for Portland.
Although there have been no reports of tornadoes or destructive hail as of yet, strong thunderstorms created striking lighting in regions where thunderstorms are uncommon.
As thunderstorms swept over the area on Wednesday night, a spectacular video captured lightning streaking across the sky above Seattle.
Lightning was seen lighting up the sky in another video taken in the Seattle area, and thunderclaps could be heard booming all around.
There haven’t been any reports of serious damage thus far.
But according to the Washington-based Everett Fire Department, firefighters were sent to a house that had apparently caught fire following a lightning strike.
Crews responded to reports of the lightning strike shortly before 8:30 p.m., officials said.
The home’s electrical system had been disrupted, but firemen were able to swiftly put out a fire on the roof before it spread, the fire department stated in a Facebook post.
Smoke from Wildfires Triggers Severe Air Quality Alerts in Western North Carolina
Fortunately, there were no reported injuries.
In Island and Snohomish counties, radar also picked up hail, but it wasn’t big enough to cause a Severe Thunderstorm Warning.
As storms moved into Skagit County on Wednesday, officials said they were keeping an eye on conditions there. Images released by the Washington Department of Transportation showed lightning in the sky in Mount Vernon.
The 970-millibar storm system, which is equivalent to a Category 2 hurricane, was linked to the ominous-looking clouds that were rolling in from the west and south, according to National Weather Service meteorologists.
“Here’s a look from Hurricane Ridge at the storms moving across the Olympic Mountains. More storms are moving into Lewis County and Grays Harbor County,” NWS forecasters wrote on social media on Wednesday.
This Information has been sourced from foxweather.
Leave a Comment