Hail Storm Hammers Seattle Area

Tue., Aug. 31, 1999

From Staff

An unusual hail and thunder storm pounded the metropolitan area’s northeastern suburbs Monday night, and a funnel cloud was sighted near Lake Washington, the National Weather Service said.

Marble-sized hail slammed cars and homes and snarled traffic along Interstate 405 when the fast-moving storm hit shortly after 8 p.m. PDT. Weather service staff at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration site on Lake Washington reported sighting a funnel that dropped 500 to 1,000 feet from the base of a rotating cloud but did not touch ground.

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