High winds lead to damage, outages, and closures
By Griffin Beach on Thursday, December 18th, 2025 in Columbia Basin News More Top Stories
PENDLETON – High winds ripped across the lower Columbia Basin on Wednesday, causing power outages, road closures, and damage to buildings.
The National Weather Service (NWS) in Pendleton had issued a high wind warning beginning Tuesday night and running through Wednesday afternoon.
NWS Lead Meteorologist Brandon Lawhorn said a gust of 81 MPH was recorded at the Pendleton Airport at around 3:53 a.m. Wednesday.
“It may very well be a record-setting wind gust here at the airport,” Lawhorn said, noting that the numbers are still preliminary.
He said several areas along the Blue Mountain foothills recorded 70 mph gusts, including a gust of 94 mph on a ridge east of Milton-Freewater. He added that although high wind events happen in this area, Wednesday was the result of a “perfect storm” of conditions.
Oregon Highway 204, the Tollgate Road, closed early Wednesday morning afternoon due to trees that had fallen on the road. It reopened at around 3 p.m. that day.
Trevor Abell, owner of Tollgate Crossing, said he was able to tour much of the area around his business Wednesday morning. “There’s a lot of damage,” he said.
Abell said he was able to drive approximately 100 yards east of the Tollgate area and farther down the west side. He said he counted at least 50 trees that had fallen on the road, including two very large ones that were blocking the road heading towards Elgin. He noted crews had been out since very early with heavy equipment and chainsaws working to remove the debris.
Abell said several of the cabins in the area had sustained damage but that the Tollgate Crossing properties appeared to be unscathed.
Power outages dotted the region, Drew Marine with Pacific Power said more than 4,500 customers between the Walla Walla and Pendleton areas experienced outages, and that as of Wednesday afternoon, just over 300 customers remained without power.
Lawhorn said conditions in the next few days will still be breezy but not quite as extreme as Wednesday’s event.
“Just keep an eye out on the forecast out of our office and heed the advisories or watches or warnings that we’re putting out over the next couple days,” he said.
Images of the damage near Tollgate crossing, courtesy of Trevor Abell
