Governor declares state of emergency

Governor Chris Gregoire today proclaimed a state of emergency in Western Washington counties due to widespread damages from the Wednesday/Thursday windstorm. Her proclamation covers most of the counties in Western Washington: Clallam, Clark, Cowlitz, Grays Harbor, Island, Jefferson, Lewis, King, Mason, Pacific, Pierce, San Juan, Skagit, Snohomish, Thurston, Wahkiakum and Whatcom.

Said the Governor:

"We can not control the weather, but we can make sure that we offer as much support as possible while families and communities work to recover from these storms. Just like all Washingtonians, I hope for a quick recovery so we can all have a happy holiday season."

According to the Governor's office:

The proclamation...directs state government to support emergency response activities in the affected counties, allowing state agencies to make expenditures and utilize resources to assist local communities in their recovery efforts, and authorizes the Washington National Guard to activate their resources. State actions are coordinated through the State Emergency Operations Center (EOC) at Camp Murray.

The EOC is operated by the Washington State Emergency Management Division of the Washington Military Department twenty four hours a day and will be fully activated until further notice, the Governor's staff say.