A strong storm surged through Washington state on Wednesday, killing two people, injuring two others, and cutting the power to more than half a million across the Pacific Northwest. Tropical-storm-force winds and gusts as high as 70 mph downed trees, knocked down power lines, and caused widespread travel disruptions. Forecasters warn that the storm, now moving south, could unleash torrential rain in California by week’s end.

Fatalities and Destruction 

The storm claimed two lives in the Seattle area. A woman in Lynnwood died when a tree fell on a homeless encampment, and another woman died when a falling tree crashed onto her home in Bellevue. Two others were injured in Maple Valley, southeast of Seattle, when a falling tree hit their trailer.

The winds caused power lines and trees to fall overnight, shattering cars and other property; the emergency services asked all residents to stay indoors. The fire department in Bellevue recommended that people seek shelter on the lowest floor of their homes and away from windows due to falling debris.

As of Wednesday morning, the storm had knocked out power to more than 530,000 homes and businesses in Washington, southwest Oregon and Northern California – down from over 600,000, according to Power Outage.us. Damage stretched into Canada’s British Columbia, where an initial 225,000 people lost power. About 100,000 customers were still in the dark on Wednesday morning, mostly on Vancouver Island.

Schools across western Washington canceled or delayed classes, and transportation officials warned drivers to exercise caution as debris and hazardous conditions slowed traffic statewide.  

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California Braces for Torrential Rain

Meteorologists have classified the weather phenomenon as a “bomb cyclone,” a storm that rapidly intensifies when polar cold air clashes with warm tropical air through a process called bombogenesis. So far, the Pacific Northwest has received about two to three inches of rainfall, but experts say as much as 20 inches could inundate Northern California and parts of Oregon by Friday.

The National Weather Service has issued a slew of alerts, including high wind, flood and blizzard warnings, ranging from northern Washington to the Sierra Nevada. Rich Otto, a meteorologist with the Weather Prediction Center, said the worst is yet to come as the storm stalls over Northern California through the upcoming days

Meanwhile, emergency services and weather officials continue to monitor the situation, urging residents to stay safe and prepare for worsening conditions.