Thousands without power after storm hits Washington state

SEATTLE (Reuters) - A storm packing fierce winds has left thousands of customers without power in western Washington state on Wednesday, and a woman was seriously injured after a tree toppled onto a Seattle-area home, authorities said.

Some 13,100 customers were without power in the greater Seattle area after the storm struck on Tuesday, utility Puget Sound Energy said on its website. Late on Tuesday, as many as 75,000 customers were without power in Washington state, Seattle broadcaster KING5 reported.

In Portland's Multnomah County, more than 100 people were without power, Portland General Electric said on its website.

In Poulsbo, about 21 miles west of Seattle, a 35-year-old woman was seriously injured when a tree crashed into her home, the local fire department said on Tuesday evening. The home was destroyed, but the woman's children, including a one-year-old girl, managed to escape unharmed, it added.

Wind gusts as high as 66 mph were recorded in Shelton, outside of the Washington state capital of Olympia, the National Weather Service said.

Overall on Tuesday, 0.81 inches of rain fell at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, the Service said. Since records started in 1945, there have only been 21 days in March with more than an inch of rain, it said.

(Reporting by Eric M. Johnson in Seattle)