Cleanup and assessment of windstorm begins
By Dan Thesman on Thursday, November 21st, 2024 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
COLUMBIA BASIN – Tuesday’s storm activity in the Walla Walla Valley and Umatilla County was significantly less damaging than what was experienced west of the Cascades.
Walla Walla County Emergency Management Director Chris Lee said Walla Walla County Public Works reported some of the hardest hit areas are the base of the Blue Mountains, Old Milton Highway and mostly the east valley foothill roads. College Place Public Works had no calls for service or impact on operations and the city of Waitsburg did not report any storm damage.
Lee has requested community response partners to start gathering information on storm-related damage within Walla Walla County. He said this assessment is crucial for a potential declaration when the state begins collecting data for a state or federal declaration.
“The assessment will include not only the physical damage but also the cost of staffing hours dedicated to storm response efforts,” Lee said. “When the state initiates data collection, we must be ready to provide a comprehensive monetary estimate of the damage to be considered for public assistance requests.”
Crews are still responding to storm activity and Lee said that damage estimates won’t be known for a few days.
Pacific Power spokesperson Simon Gutierrez said 6,103 customers lost power in the Walla Walla area and 2,741 customers lost power in the company’s Pendleton district.
Milton-Freewater City Light & Power reported an estimated 500 customers were without power, according to City Manager Chad Morris.
Columbia Rural Electric Association spokesperson Doug Case said about 1,000 members experienced storm-related power outages. While electricity has been restored, Case said the utility provider lost a few power poles on Lewis Peak due to the storm.
As restoration efforts from Tuesday’s storm have begun, the Columbia Rural Electric Association sent a four-person crew to Milton-Freewater to assist the city. Milton-Freewater is also providing a drop box for residents to dispose of downed branches and limbs from recent storms. The drop box is located at the recycling depot at 640 County Road. It will be open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. today (Thursday) and Friday to allow individuals to drop off storm debris.
Photo of cleanup work on Clancy Road via Walla Walla County Emergency Management
