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Monday, March 18, 2024
March 18, 2024

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Winds topple tree into historic Vancouver building

Wind gusts reported at 70 mph, expected to ease after 7 p.m.

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A tree fallen by high winds at the Grant House on Officer's Row in Vancouver on Saturday.
A tree fallen by high winds at the Grant House on Officer's Row in Vancouver on Saturday. Photo Gallery

As of 7:45 p.m.

Mount Hood, Ore.: 94 mph

Marys Peak, Ore.: 91 mph

Oceanside, Ore.: 87 mph

North Bonneville: 81 mph

Hebo, Ore.: 78 mph

Ilwaco: 75 mph

Yachats, Ore.: 72 mph

Naselle: 71 mph

Vancouver: 70 mph

Megler, Ore.: 68 mph

Port of Vancouver:

70 mph at 3:20 p.m

Felida:

47 mph at 2:40 p.m

Ridgefield:

45 mph at 3:30 p.m

Pearson Field:

43 mph at 3:19 p.m

Canyon Creek:

43 mph at 6:52 p.m

Hockinson:

42 mph at 4:25 p.m

Syndi Carras was just past Officers Row on her way home from work for a quick break Saturday when she heard a loud cracking noise in the direction of the Grant House.

Amid the pounding winds and swirling leaves, she didn’t think too much of it until she headed back to the office and saw the 150-year-old maple tree that had smashed down in front of the historic building.

“I heard a loud crack, and then what I thought was a gunshot,” Carras said, looking at the thick downed tree, which skimmed the outer balconies of the restaurant on its way down. “When I drove back I saw this. My biggest fear — well, other than someone getting hurt — is that it damaged the building.”

Strong winds plagued much of Clark County and the greater Portland area Saturday afternoon. Gusts of 65 mph were reported in Aurora, Ore., and a spotter reported a gust of 70 mph near the Port of Vancouver, said Colby Neuman, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Portland.

Tip: you can interact with this map using your fingerscursor (or two fingers on touch screens)cursor. Map

“Across the Willamette Valley and in general, most gusts have been around 45-55 miles per hour,” Neuman said. Winds began to ebb around 7 p.m. as the windstorm moved north.

Conditions Saturday were just about perfect for knocking down trees.

“It’s a combination of all the foliage still up there, wet grounds, 40-50 mph winds,” Neuman said. “There have also been power outages all over the place.”

Clark Public Utilities reported outages throughout the county, affecting about 4,500 homes, mostly in Hazel Dell and Salmon Creek.

“They are coming back up already,” Erica Erland, a spokeswoman said Saturday evening. “We have crews out in the field and they’ll work until everyone is back on.”

Wind caused more problems in Oregon. About 28,000 customers lost power in Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas counties, Portland General Electric said. Another 12,000 customers lost power in Marion County.

Nobody was outside the Grant House or on the balcony when its big maple tree cracked and fell. The tree dented the sidewalk pavement, knocked some slats off the railing and may have shaken a few roof tiles, but the Vancouver Fire Department came out and said there was no major structural damage, said Jon Taylor, who owns the Grant House Restaurant with his wife, Suzy.

“Other than railings, there’s not too much damage,” Taylor said Saturday afternoon. “Maybe on the roof, but with these winds we can’t check now. The most important thing is nobody got hurt. And we’re still open. People are still in there eating.”

Arborists from the city had visited a few weeks ago and told Taylor that they were planning to remove the tree, which has lost a few branches in storms over the past month, he said. A large branch snapped off the tree on Sept. 17, blocking traffic until the branch could be removed.

As of 7:45 p.m.

Mount Hood, Ore.: 94 mph

Marys Peak, Ore.: 91 mph

Oceanside, Ore.: 87 mph

North Bonneville: 81 mph

Hebo, Ore.: 78 mph

Ilwaco: 75 mph

Yachats, Ore.: 72 mph

Naselle: 71 mph

Vancouver: 70 mph

Megler, Ore.: 68 mph

“They were going to take it down, but I guess they don’t have to now,” he said.

Suzy Taylor said she and some of her staff had gone out to watch the storm at around 2 p.m., just before the tree fell. With the winds as strong as they were, she decided to take down the eight American flags that usually decorate the front of the building so they wouldn’t get damaged.

“The wind came up, and after I brought the flags in I went out to move my car, just in case,” she said. “When I got there I heard this sound, like a thump, and all these leaves blew by. I checked in the upstairs veranda and saw the tree down.”

As workers began the cleanup at 3:15 p.m., a group of runners clad as a doctor, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and Waldo, among other things, stopped at the restaurant for a beer as part of the Ghost Runners Brewing run through the area.

Port of Vancouver:

70 mph at 3:20 p.m

Felida:

47 mph at 2:40 p.m

Ridgefield:

45 mph at 3:30 p.m

Pearson Field:

43 mph at 3:19 p.m

Canyon Creek:

43 mph at 6:52 p.m

Hockinson:

42 mph at 4:25 p.m

Suzy Taylor said she was glad they didn’t arrive a little earlier.

“We were very lucky,” she said. “Both that nobody was on the sidewalk and that it didn’t do any serious damage. It was the perfect height. If it was taller it could have really done some harm.”

The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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