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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Hundreds of lightning strikes hit Washington

SEATTLE — Hundreds of lightning strikes hit Washington overnight as thunderstorms rolled across the state and authorities are watching for smoke Wednesday to see if they sparked wildfires. A meteorologist in the National Weather Service office in Spokane, Ryan Fliehman, said 400 to 500 lightning strikes were recorded in Eastern Washington and North Idaho. There were no immediate reports of wildfires, but he says firefighting agencies would send up planes to look for smoke. A red flag warning for high wildfire danger in most of Eastern Washington expires Wednesday. Dry weather with highs in the 90s is forecast through the weekend. A meteorologist at the Weather Service office in Seattle, Danny Mercer, says there were about 100 lightning strikes overnight in Western Washington, but little rain.