Grays Harbor County cut off

The Olympian • Published December 04, 2007

By Monday night, "hundreds and hundreds of trees" were scattered all over the roads leading to and from Grays Harbor County in the wake of the windstorm, making vehicular travel to or from the county impossible, said Grays Harbor sheriff's Sgt. Brad Johansson.

"It looks like God took a weedwhacker to the area and knocked down all the trees," Johansson said Monday night.

Sheriff's deputies and emergency personnel in Grays Harbor County were busy Monday night responding to collisions and checking on elderly residents who were stranded and without power, Johansson said.

Aberdeen Police Sgt. Art Laur said Monday night that the entire city was without power. By Monday night, the high winds — with gusts estimated about 100 mph — had died down, but the rains had picked up, making flooding a concern, Laur said.

Laur said he did not think there were any fuel stations open Monday night because of the power outages. Emergency officials are worried about residents on oxygen machines or who required electricity-driven medical care, he said.

Johansson confirmed that two Grays Harbor PUD workers were taken to an area hospital and one was in serious condition after a tree blew down on a lift truck bucket Sunday night. One of the workers fell an estimated 400 feet, a sheriff's deputy told The Associated Press.

Two people were killed in Grays Harbor County, said Lynn O'Conner, a county spokeswoman. One of the deaths occurred in Aberdeen, she said, and the other occurred near Montesano after medical equipment failed because of the power outage.