Ice storm in Seattle area leaves thousands without power

Nearly 7,000 people began Friday without power in the Seattle area, the vast majority of them residents of Snohomish County.

More than 5,500 customers without power were reported in Snohomish County just before 10:30 a.m., with a large cluster in Everett. A few hundred outages were reported in Seattle, most of them in South Seattle.

Puget Sound Energy, which supplies power in Tacoma and other Pierce County cities, reported only 59 outages. And in the San Juan Islands, 850 were without power by midmorning, after an outage Thursday evening left nearly all without power.

Follow these tips to get through a power outage:

• Have a power-outage kit that includes flashlights and batteries, glow-in-the-dark sticks, a lantern, matches, a wind-up clock, a portable radio, a Mylar blanket and a can opener.
• To avoid deadly carbon-monoxide poisoning, keep generators outdoors when they’re running. Make sure the exhaust is not near a window or other opening to the home. Keep the exhaust and muffler away from combustible material.
• Never burn charcoal indoors. Charcoal produces toxic fumes that can kill quickly. Use this multi-language page to help warn your neighbors. 
• Use hot water sparingly.
• Turn off most electrical devices and unplug sensitive electrical equipment. Leave a light switched on, however, so you’ll know when the power returns.
• Never handle or approach a downed power line.
• Dress in layers and cover your head. Close off unused rooms. Close drapes to prevent drafts.
• Use only space heaters designed for the indoors. Even those need to be adequately vented to avoid carbon-monoxide poisoning. Keep space heaters away from curtains and clothing. Always turn off the heaters before going to bed or leaving home.
• Get fresh air and get help right away if you feel sick or dizzy while using a generator or space heater. Fatigue, nausea or sleepiness are signs of carbon-monoxide poisoning.
• Check on your neighbors.
• Seattle City Light outage hotline, 206-684-7400; www.seattle.gov/light/
• Puget Sound Energy outage reporting, 888-225-5773; www.pse.com/outage/outage-map