Summary (tl;dr)

A powerful winter storm, including blizzard warnings and high winds, is sweeping across the Pacific Northwest of the United States and parts of British Columbia, Canada, causing widespread power outages for hundreds of thousands of residents and making travel treacherous.

Essential Background

The Pacific Northwest has been experiencing a "parade" of severe weather systems, including a week of heavy rain and flooding, which has left soils thoroughly saturated. This pre-existing ground saturation significantly increases the risk of falling trees and mudslides when strong winds or heavy snow occur.

The Full Story

As of Wednesday, December 17, 2025, a potent winter storm is impacting the Pacific Northwest, triggering blizzard warnings for the Olympic and Cascade Mountains in Washington, as well as Western Chelan County. Simultaneously, damaging high winds, with gusts reaching up to 80 mph in some areas, have battered Western Washington, Northern Oregon, and the Inland Northwest (including Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho).

These severe weather conditions have led to extensive power outages, leaving over 500,000 customers in Washington and Oregon without electricity. Utility providers such as Puget Sound Energy, Avista, Clark Public Utilities, Snohomish County PUD, and Tacoma Public Utilities are reporting widespread disruptions. Heavy snowfall is also forecast for mountain regions, with some areas potentially receiving over 100 inches of snow. The storm's impact has forced numerous school closures and made travel extremely difficult or impossible across affected regions, particularly over mountain passes. British Columbia's Lower Mainland is also experiencing significant power outages from the same weather system.

Why It Matters

The combination of blizzard conditions, damaging winds, and widespread power outages poses significant safety risks, including hypothermia, carbon monoxide poisoning from improper heating, and dangers from downed power lines and trees. The disruption to transportation, especially the closure of mountain passes, isolates communities and hinders emergency services. With saturated soils from previous flooding, there's an increased threat of mudslides and further infrastructure damage, adding to the ongoing challenges for residents and utility crews working to restore services.

Geographic Location

• Olympic Mountains, Washington, United States (Blizzard warnings and severe snow)
• Cascade Mountains, Washington, United States (Blizzard warnings, heavy snow, dangerous travel conditions, closed passes)
• Seattle, King County, Washington, United States (High winds, heavy rain, power outages)
• Tacoma, Pierce County, Washington, United States (High winds, heavy rain, power outages, road closures)
• Vancouver, Clark County, Washington, United States (Widespread power outages, school closures)
• Spokane, Spokane County, Washington, United States (High winds, power outages)
• Western Chelan County, Washington, United States (Blizzard warnings, heavy snow, strong winds)
• Puget Sound region, Washington, United States (Widespread power outages impacting customers of Puget Sound Energy, Snohomish County PUD, and Tacoma Public Utilities)
• Inland Northwest (spanning Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho), United States (Widespread power outages impacting Avista customers due to strong winds)
• Northern Oregon, United States (Widespread power outages due to high winds and rain)
• Lower Mainland, British Columbia, Canada (Widespread power outages due to strong windstorm and heavy rain)