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<b>3 killed, thousands without power in Northwest wind storm</b><b><br>
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<b><a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://tinyurl.com/qh2zh63">http://tinyurl.com/qh2zh63</a> <br>
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<[14 image slide show in link above]><br>
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<p class="byline ap-byline">Lisa Baumann, Associated Press</p>
<h5 class="timestamp" title="2015-11-17T23:48:51Z"> Updated
11:48 pm, Tuesday, November 17, 2015<br>
</h5>
SEATTLE (AP) — At least three people have died and hundreds of
thousands were without power on Tuesday as a severe storm packing
high winds unleashed across the Northwest.
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">Police said a woman in her 50s
was killed when a tree toppled taking down power lines as it fell
in Spokane on Tuesday afternoon. Fire crews were unable to
resuscitate the woman.</p>
<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">Another woman died after a tree
fell on her car on Highway 904 about 15 miles southwest of
Spokane, according to the Washington State Patrol.</p>
<div class="hdnce-e hdnce-item-47203">
</div>
<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">A man in his mid-20s was killed
when a tree crushed his car as he was driving near Sultan in
Snohomish County. The tree landed on the car's roof directly over
the driver's seat, killing him instantly, said Fire Chief <a
href="http://www.seattlepi.com/search/?action=search&channel=news%2Ftexas&inlineLink=1&searchindex=gsa&query=%22Merlin+Halverson%22">Merlin
Halverson</a>.</p>
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">Their identities were not
immediately released.</p>
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">Puget Sound Energy reported
nearly 178,000 customers without power in its Western Washington
region Tuesday night as trees toppled onto roadways and power
lines. An electrical power failure at a Tacoma sewer treatment
plant resulted in waste water sewage discharging for a short time
into the lower Puyallup River.</p>
<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">Two mudslides blocked Highway 2
between Skykomish and Deception Falls, the state <a
href="http://www.seattlepi.com/search/?action=search&channel=news%2Ftexas&inlineLink=1&searchindex=gsa&query=%22Department+of+Transportation%22">Department
of Transportation</a> said. Ferry trips were delayed or canceled
in several areas and Sound Transit trains were delayed due to
trees and water on the tracks throughout the system.</p>
<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">Area rivers were also flooding
from the Snohomish River near Monroe to the Snoqualmie River in
King County. About 40 miles northeast of Seattle, Skykomish River
was flooding downtown Sultan, prompting residents and business
owners to place sand bags and leave for the night.</p>
<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">The Washington State Patrol
temporarily closed Interstate 90 between the towns of George and
Vantage in central Washington after winds whipped up a dust storm.</p>
<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">The <a
href="http://www.seattlepi.com/search/?action=search&channel=news%2Ftexas&inlineLink=1&searchindex=gsa&query=%22National+Weather+Service%22">National
Weather Service</a> issued a windstorm warning that began noon
Tuesday and ran until midnight for most of Eastern Washington and
Northern Idaho.</p>
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">The Weather Service said a
Pacific storm system would arrive Tuesday afternoon, with
sustained winds of 45 mph and with gusts up to 70 mph in certain
areas including Spokane. Rattlesnake Mountain, a 3,500-foot ridge
that overlooks the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in southwestern
Washington, saw wind gusts as high as 113 mph, the <a
href="http://www.seattlepi.com/search/?action=search&channel=news%2Ftexas&inlineLink=1&searchindex=gsa&query=%22Tri-City+Herald%22">Tri-City
Herald</a> reported (<a href="http://goo.gl/cmSEN6%29.">http://goo.gl/cmSEN6).</a></p>
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">Energy company Avista Corp.
said more than 136,000 customers had lost power as of Tuesday
night around Spokane and in Northern Idaho. Flights into and out
of <a
href="http://www.seattlepi.com/search/?action=search&channel=news%2Ftexas&inlineLink=1&searchindex=gsa&query=%22Spokane+International+Airport%22">Spokane
International Airport</a> were canceled or delayed Tuesday
evening.</p>
<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">The Cheney and Spokane campuses
of <a
href="http://www.seattlepi.com/search/?action=search&channel=news%2Ftexas&inlineLink=1&searchindex=gsa&query=%22Eastern+Washington+University%22">Eastern
Washington University</a> closed Tuesday afternoon because of
high winds.</p>
<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">The National Weather Service
said the storm also brought heavy snow to the Methow Valley in
north-central Washington.</p>
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">In Oregon, thousands were
without power in the greater Portland area and a flood watch was
issued for the northern Oregon coast through Wednesday. State
officials said heavy rain caused Portland's sewer system to
overflow into the Willamette River and residents were urged to
avoid contact with the river through Thursday evening.</p>
<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">More than 20 fallen trees
closed eastbound Interstate 84 Tuesday night between exit 17 at
Troutdale and exit 64 at Hood River for debris removal. Oregon
Department of Transportation officials said they expected the
closure to last until about noon Wednesday.</p>
<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">Around the country Tuesday, a
powerful storm dumped heavy snow on parts of Colorado while
bringing the threat of tornadoes to millions in central and
southern states. Much of Interstate 70, Colorado's main east-west
highway, was closed because of blizzard conditions on the state's
Eastern Plains as well as in northwest Kansas, where up to 15
inches of snow and heavy winds are in the forecast.</p>
<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">Early Tuesday, two weak
tornadoes touched down in the northern suburbs of the Dallas-Fort
Worth area, according to the National Weather Service. No one was
injured.</p>
<p xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
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xmlns:o="http://w3.org/ns/odrl/2/">The storm that originated in
the Gulf of Alaska could be a harbinger of El Nino, the
ocean-warming phenomenon that's predicted to bring heavy rain to
the West in the coming months, said <a
href="http://www.seattlepi.com/search/?action=search&channel=news%2Ftexas&inlineLink=1&searchindex=gsa&query=%22Kathy+Hoxsie%22">Kathy
Hoxsie</a> of the National Weather Service.<br>
</p>
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</p>
<b>Ken<br>
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</b>
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