Has Washington State Ever Experienced a Bomb Cyclone?

Has Washington State Ever Experienced a Cyclone?

So I spent the weekend watching the movie "Twisters" and it was fun but it did get me thinking, has a cyclone ever hit Washington State?

I saw a recent posting that a mid-latitude cyclone on Tuesday is going to develop a few hundred miles west of the coast of Washington that could cause a serious windstorm.

Typically, cyclones are large-scale air masses that rotate around strong centers of low atmospheric pressure. They can manifest as hurricanes in the Atlantic and eastern North Pacific Oceans or as typhoons in the western North Pacific Ocean

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Washington has occasionally felt indirect impacts from cyclonic activity occurring elsewhere along the Pacific Rim. For instance, remnants of tropical systems originating near Hawaii or along Mexico's coast can sometimes make their way northward, bringing increased rainfall and gusty winds to parts of Washington. 

Looking back through historical records reveals instances where unusual weather patterns stirred public interest but fell short of being classified as cyclones within Washington State itself.

One notable example occurred in 1962 when remnants from Typhoon Freda combined with other atmospheric conditions created what's known locally as "The Columbus Day Storm."

According to Wikipedia:

The storm caused 9 fatalities in Washington, some from falling trees or downed power lines. The Willapa Hills and the southern portion of the Olympic Peninsula incurred the worst damage in the state, losing entire stands of trees. The Department of Commerce estimated damage in six western counties at more than $20 million.

So Washington State does get its fair share of cyclones on the coast but none have touched down directly in the state of Washington but some of our weather is influenced by cyclones that develop off the coast of the Pacific Ocean.