Madness Factor

The next storm is upon us, so I am once again weather-blogging. This time I avoided a nightmare commute by leaving work early. According to the National Weather Service, we’re about to get socked by nasty winds:

THESE HIGH WINDS WILL CAUSE FALLING TREES AND POWER OUTAGES ARE LIKELY. THERE MAY BE DAMAGE TO SOME STRUCTURES. THERE IS A HAZARD FROM FLYING DEBRIS TONIGHT. PEOPLE SHOULD RUSH TO COMPLETION PREPARATION FOR HIGH WINDS…LOOSE OBJECTS AROUND THE YARD SHOULD BE SECURED…BOAT MOORINGS SHOULD BE CHECKED. THE STRONGEST WINDS SO FAR THIS SEASON ARE LIKELY TONIGHT.

(I know it’s going to be a doozy, but do they have to shout about it?)

It’s not just wind, either — apparently we got two inches of rain before 5 p.m., and it’s still coming down. We even had a few flashes of lightning earlier. I think we can count on losing power — we lose power when there’s a light breeze — so we have candles, flashlights and our camping stove at the ready. In case you care, you can read more about the storm here.

UPDATE: With high winds still yet to hit, rain is wreaking havoc across the city. From the “Storm Updates” page on KOMOTV.com:

6:25 p.m.: 500 block of 30th Ave. E, Seattle: A woman was critically injured after she got trapped in a basement of her Capitol Hill home as water began to flood into the room and the door got jammed shut. Neighbors heard her scream and called 911. The water flooded to the ceiling and firefighters were not able to get access. They had to cut a hole in the floor above to pull her out, but she was under water for an estimated 8 minutes. Medics were performing CPR on her as they rushed her to Harborview.

Sheesh. Holy crap.