2 Dead After ‘Bomb Cyclone’ Struck Washington State

At least two deaths were reported by authorities in Washington state following a bomb cyclone that hit the Pacific Northwest.

In a Facebook post, South County Fire said that firefighters responded after a large tree fell on a homeless encampment off Alderwood Mall Parkway in Lynnwood during the evening of Tuesday, Nov. 19.

“Tragically, a woman in her 50s died,” said South County Fire. “No other injuries were reported.”

The fire service warned the public that strong winds might continue through the morning of Wednesday, Nov. 20, warning people to avoid the roads and downed power lines by staying at least 30 feet away.

In an email to PEOPLE, a spokesperson for South County Fire said the fire service had no additional information to share about the incident or would identity of the victim.

Additionally, the Bellevue Fire Department announced in a Facebook post that a tree fell on a home in the Bridal Trails neighborhood on the evening of Nov. 19, killing a woman who was in the shower. The incident was reported to 911 by the woman’s husband.

“The weather conditions were so dangerous in the vicinity that Kirkland Aid Car 126 transported the man away from the home and to safety,” the Bellevue Fire Department said.

PEOPLE reached out to Bellevue Fire for comment.

KOMO News reported that at least five people were hospitalized — one of them in critical condition — at Seattle’s Harborview Medical Center with injuries related to the storm.

The deaths and injuries came after the bomb cyclone struck the Pacific Northwest the day before.

As defined by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), a bomb cyclone happens “when a cold air mass collides with a warm air mass, such as air over warm ocean waters” — causing strong winds and rain to batter the region and resulting in power outages and fallen trees, CBS News reported.

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Nearly 500,000 people across Washington state are without electricity, PowerOutage.us reported as of 2:40 pm ET on Nov. 20. In Seattle, about 40,000 customers were without power that same afternoon, according to Seattle City Light.

Meanwhile, about 85,000 customers don’t have power in British Columbia as of 2:45 pm ET on Nov. 20, BC Hydro reported.

The Washington Emergency Management Division said on Nov. 19 that it had seen maximum wind gusts in some areas of the Pacific Northwest Coast measuring 50 to 65 mph, adding that the South Puget Sound experienced gusts of 30 to 35 mph and parts of North Puget Sound had 50 mph likes.

“I didn’t even go outside because I was scared I could be hit with flying debris,” Washington state resident Rob Corcoran, whose home was struck by a falling tree, told CNN. “I had no idea it was as bad as it is.”

According to an update posted at 3 pm ET on Nov. 20, the National Weather Service’s Weather Prediction Center said that “back-to-back powerful Pacific storm systems” are expected to affect the West Coast the rest of the week “with heavy rain , life-threatening flooding, strong winds, and higher elevation mountain snow.”