Windstorm Knocks Out Horn Rapids Irrigation, Closes Landfill

We didn't really hear the wind Sunday late night, but it happened.

A few branches in our yard in Kennewick were the only evidence of some overnight winds that swept through our region into early Monday.

However, they were more pronounced in Richland and west of town. The City of Richland announced late Sunday late-early Monday morning that the Horn Rapids Landfill (Richland dump) will be closed at least all day Monday, and possibly longer, after these high winds took down a number of power poles in the area.

This outage is also affecting area irrigation systems, main pumps and especially agricultural water supplies. The loss of power disabled these systems.

Currently, as of Monday morning, Benton PUD and other electric crews are on site putting up new poles, restringing and fixing wires, and attempting to restore power as quickly as possible.

The power outage is also affecting businesses in the Horn Rapids Industrial park, no word if any homes impacted. The loss of power shut down what's called the Horn Rapids Irrigation Intake, which is the master 'source' for the irrigation water to be distributed in the area.

The City of Richland told residents to continue to monitor their Facebook page and city website for more updates as to when the power will be restored.