Thousands in Kitsap County without power for second time in a week



PORT ORCHARD, Wash. -- Thousands of people are in the dark once again.  Strong winds swept through the Kitsap Peninsula Tuesday, knocking down trees and power lines. The winds were continuing to gust late Tuesday night, making it hard for the crews who are trying to clear roads and restore power.

J.D. Burke doesn’t have any power at home. But that’s not stopping him from finishing up some painting.

“You just kind of roll with the punches and keep a smile on your face, I guess.”

He and his wife say they can’t wait for the power to come back for them to fix up their home.

“It has to be done before Thanksgiving because we’re having people over, and I don’t want people coming over to a house where there’s just random white spots on the walls for no reason.”

Power is out through much of Port Orchard and Kitsap County Tuesday night, after another strong windstorm moved through, knocking down trees and power lines.

“I took the dog out for a walk, and it was hard to walk, it was really, really windy,” said Erin Vandordrecht.

She said they lost power at her Port Orchard last week for more than 24 hours. But she learned how to make do, using the power in her car to charge phones and stay warm.

“We try to keep a good attitude, it came back last time, and it’ll come back this time. We’re just trying to keep our spirits up.”

She said it’s not easy with three kids and a dog to take care of.

“We like to go camping, so we’re just trying to tell them it’s like camping with a nice warm, closed-in tent.”

They’re hoping the power will come back soon. J.D. says if he and his wife have to spend another night in the dark, at least they’ll be warm.

“We got a fireplace that runs on backup D batteries. So at least they did one thing right when they made this house.”

Due to below freezing temperatures Tuesday night, the Kitsap County Department of Emergency has opened two shelters. Hours of operation are 6 p.m. to 7 a.m.  The locations are: the Salvation Army at 832 6th Street in Bremerton, and the Kingston Community Center at 1212 NE SR 104.