EXTREME WEATHER: Windstorm In Seattle Rocks Floating Bridge - Knocks Out Power To 135,000 And Hurts Two!

<div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: yellow;">November 04, 2013 - UNITED STATES </span></b>- More than 135,000 people were without power, two were injured and motorists abandoned their cars on a floating bridge Saturday as a fast-moving windstorm swept the Seattle area, officials said.<br /><br />Puget Sound Energy, which serves counties around Seattle, told NBC News that 95,000 customers were without electricity in the afternoon. The storm knocked down several distribution lines early Saturday.<br /><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XRjt5FeB-Xc/UngOw4e4YdI/AAAAAAABM7w/ierAyIzW5TQ/s1600/seattlewindstorm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-XRjt5FeB-Xc/UngOw4e4YdI/AAAAAAABM7w/ierAyIzW5TQ/s1600/seattlewindstorm.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Windblown waves coming in off Puget Sound close to high tide batter waterfront homes in<br />Seattle's West Seattle neighborhood on Saturday.<b>  </b>Elaine Thompson / AP</td></tr></tbody></table><br />"We expect the situation to worsen in the next few hours," Ray Lane of Puget's communications department said.<br /><br />Gusts in Seattle and the region around it hit 60 mph or more. <br /><br />The Washington State Department of Transportation closed the State Route 520 floating bridge across Lake Washington for two hours because of high winds and large waves.<br /><br />Troopers said as many as 50 cars were abandoned on the westbound lanes of the bridge. Troopers on foot escorted the people back to their vehicles.<br /><br />A 48-year-old man was seriously injured when a tree fell on his car and a 2-year-old was hurt when a branch broke from a tree and hit her near the University of Washington, <a href="http://www.king5.com/news/local/Windstorm-causes-downed-trees-power-outages-230345401.html">NBC station KING 5 of Seattle reported</a>.<br /><br />Seattle City Light, another main energy distributor, said that 40,000 customers suffered power failures in its service territory within Seattle and suburbs around it.<br /><br />As the storm moves through the area, elevations above 2,500 feet were expected to get between 6 and 11 inches of snow in a 12-hour period.<br /><br />The National Weather Service issued a wind warning for much of Saturday covering coastal areas in Washington and Oregon. - <a href="http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/11/02/21289798-windstorm-in-seattle-rocks-floating-bridge-hurts-two-knocks-out-power-to-135000"><span style="color: orange;"><b>NBC News</b></span></a>.<br /><br /><br /></div>

Earth Changes Electricity Floating Bridge Gusts High Tide High Winds Lake Washington Large Waves Oregon Power Outage Puget Sound Seattle Snowfall Storm Washington Windstorm EXTREME WEATHER: Windstorm In Seattle Rocks Floating Bridge - Knocks Out Power To 135,000 And Hurts Two!

November 04, 2013 - UNITED STATES - More than 135,000 people were without power, two were injured and motorists abandoned their cars on a floating bridge Saturday as a fast-moving windstorm swept the Seattle area, officials said.Puget Sound Energy,…

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Oregon guv says he'll fight RTW4Less for government workers

<div class="tr_bq"><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=9,0,47,0" height="270" id="flashObj" width="480"><param name="movie" value="http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1&isUI=1" /><param name="bgcolor" value="#FFFFFF" /><param name="flashVars" value="videoId=2645579766001&playerID=2436822742001&playerKey=AQ~~,AAAAPLpuSqE~,a1DdoZJH5WT7C8Y068BNUzNkGsOfv-0l&domain=embed&dynamicStreaming=true" /><param name="base" value="http://admin.brightcove.com" /><param name="seamlesstabbing" value="false" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="swLiveConnect" value="true" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><embed src="http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1&isUI=1" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" flashVars="videoId=2645579766001&playerID=2436822742001&playerKey=AQ~~,AAAAPLpuSqE~,a1DdoZJH5WT7C8Y068BNUzNkGsOfv-0l&domain=embed&dynamicStreaming=true" base="http://admin.brightcove.com" name="flashObj" width="480" height="270" seamlesstabbing="false" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowFullScreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" swLiveConnect="true" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/shockwave/download/index.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object></div><br />Oregon's governor John Kitzhaber slammed a proposed ballot measure that would impose right-to-work-for-less on government workers during a Labor Day picnic. <br /><br />Backers of the ballot measure want to crush Oregon unions. They say they don't but they're lying.<br /><br />Jeff Mapes at <a href="http://www.oregonlive.com/mapes/index.ssf/2013/09/john_kitzhaber_tells_organized.html#incart_river_default" rel="nofollow">The Oregonian</a> reported:<br /><blockquote>Kitzhaber, speaking at a Labor Day picnic at Oaks Park sponsored by the Northwest Labor Council, denounced the initiative as an attempt to turn Oregon into a "so-called right-to-work state" that would weaken unions and leave workers less well-off... </blockquote><blockquote>"A right-to-work state means you have a right to work for less without a voice in the workplace," Kitzhaber told the labor crowd. "A right-to-work state means you have a right to be exploited and ripped off and work at unsafe jobs and low wages and no benefits." </blockquote><blockquote>The governor charged that anti-union forces are targeting Oregon "because this is where labor is strongest." He cited organized labor's role in passing the nation's second highest minimum wage law and noted that Oregon's largest union -- Service Employees International Union -- has been able to reverse the general trend in declining union membership by organizing home health care workers... </blockquote><blockquote>...unions have already been girding for another fight over an initiative they believe is aimed at weakening the public employee unions, which are <a href="http://www.oregonlive.com/politics/index.ssf/2013/01/despite_their_clout_oregons_pu.html">key backers of Democratic candidates in Oregon</a>... </blockquote><blockquote>He said right-to-work laws strike at the heart of unions that he said play a crucial role in building the middle class. "Without organized labor, we have very little chance to address the growth of income disparity," he said.</blockquote>

government workers Oregon right to work for less Oregon guv says he'll fight RTW4Less for government workers

Oregon's governor John Kitzhaber slammed a proposed ballot measure that would impose right-to-work-for-less on government workers during a Labor Day picnic. Backers of the ballot measure want to crush Oregon unions. They say they don't but they're ly…

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