UPDATE: Power Restored to North Juanita

UPDATE, 10:30 a.m. Dec. 17: Puget Sound Energy reports that power has been restored to almost all areas of Kirkland that lost it Monday morning. The company’s power outage map shows only six customers in the north Kirkland, Bothell and Kenmore areas still without power, and 26 in the Kirkland, Houghton, Rose Hill and Redmond areas. Power was restored at Juanita Elementary school by 9 a.m.

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UPDATE, 8:10 a.m. Dec. 17: Power is reportedly out in north Juanita, with a traffic light out near NE 132nd Street causing backups, and no power at Juanita Elementary. Juanita Elementary will start two hours late, with its preschool and morning kindergarten classes canceled, said Kathryn Reith, Lake Washington School District spokeswoman. Residents in the area of Juanita High School are reporting power being out, but Reith said she had not heard it being out at the high school.

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Original story:

As of 6:30 a.m. Monday, 17,000 Puget Sound Energy (PSE) customers were without power due to strong winds and rain, and according to the company's outage map, some 2,754 of them were in the "Kirkland/Houghton/Rose Hill/Bridle Trails/Redmond area."

According to PSE, that area includes 44,850 total customers. The map included no estimated time of power restoration for the area as crews scramble to deal without outages all over PSE's Western Washington's service area.

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We'll keep you posted about the latest storm developments here on Patch. Please send news tips to Greg.Johnston@patch.com, or tell us in the comments box below. Readers can also follow up on Facebook and on Twitter at @KirklandPatch.

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For more tips on dealing with heavy rain, see this checklist on Take Winter by Storm, a group formed by public and private utilities of Western Washington.

If you're experiencing an outage or suspect a natural gas leak, call Puget Sound Energy 1-888-225-5773. Click here for real-time updates, or check Twitter.com/PSETalk.

If you rely on public transit, check the status of your ride on Metro Transit Alert Center’s website. Click here for metro's flood routes.

Puget Sound energy posted this notice to its web site this morning:

The National Weather Service has forecast a significant weather storm to hit the region Sunday evening. In addition to strong winds, coastal flooding and mountain blizzard conditions are in the forecast. Strong winds are expected to begin near midnight, with the most severe winds -- up to 70 mph -- reaching our area around 4 a.m. 

If you lose power, report it by calling 1-888-225-5773.  If you see a downed power line, stay away and report it to PSE.  We have 83 crews ready to respond overnight. Additional crews have been called and will arrive in the morning. If the storm is as severe as predicted, it could take a few days to restore power to all our customers. Go to www.PSE.com/prepare for emergency preparedness tips and information.