Scenes From the Storm That Drenched the West Coast
The storm, driven by the season’s first major atmospheric river, inundated the Pacific Northwest and Northern California, killing at least three people and causing widespread power outages.
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A gusty, rain-soaked storm swept through the Pacific Northwest and Northern California this week, killing at least three people and knocking out power for hundreds of thousands of customers.
The dangerous weather, fueled by the season’s first major atmospheric river from the Pacific Ocean, battered the region starting on Tuesday. Forceful winds wiped out power for half a million customers in Washington. Among the places hardest hit was the Seattle area, where falling trees killed two people.
The storm then moved into Northern California, where it disrupted hundreds of flights, flooded creeks, drenched San Francisco and brought heavy snow to parts of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade mountain ranges. On Saturday, a body was recovered in floodwaters in Sonoma County, local authorities said.
Though the storm is weakening as it inches south, residents are still reeling from the damage. More than 90,000 customers in Washington were still without power on Saturday morning, along with about 17,000 in California. In the region north of San Francisco, which includes Napa Valley, flooding is expected to continue through Saturday.
Here are photos of the storm’s toll this week.
Saturday, Nov. 23
Cars drive on a snowy highway over Donner Summit in California.
Water rescue teams deployed in Forestville, Calif.
Friday, Nov. 22
A cyclist rides through a flooded intersection in San Francisco.
Fog rolled in around the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco.
Flooding in Santa Rosa caused road closures and detours.
Some streets were flooded in Rohnert Park, Calif.
Staci Harpole looks over a flooded vineyard off Wohler Road in Forestville.
A mudslide near a home in Sonoma County, Calif.
Flooding in Santa Rosa, Calif.
Livestock graze on a patch of grass surrounded by the swollen Eel River in Ferndale, Calif.
Thursday, Nov. 21
A giant tree fell on Front Street in Crescent City, Calif.
Police officers help a woman walk through a flooded parking lot in Santa Rosa.
Roads and vineyards were flooded in Sebastopol, Calif.
Police officers wave to a car trying to drive through a flooded parking lot in Santa Rosa.
Emergency crews responded to a downed tree in Issaquah, Wash.
Wednesday, Nov. 20
Residents survey storm damage in Seattle.
Tara Brown surveys storm damage while walking her dog in Lake Stevens, Wash.
Utility workers tend to downed power lines in Sonoma County.
Tiffani Palpong stands in front of her property in Lake Stevens where her son was trapped by downed power lines and trees.
Isabella Karamitsos, a U.S. Geological Survey employee, deploys a sensor to measure water flow in Santa Rosa.
Kate Selig and Hank Sanders contributed reporting.
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