BELLEVUE, Wash. — The storm that moved through Tuesday night caused shopping malls in Bellevue and Tukwila to flood and trees to fall in other areas.
The heaviest ran hit Bellevue around 8:30 p.m. The water came so fast, as it drained off the roof at Bellevue Square mall, a drain backed up. The pipe burst and sent water shooting through the wall at the Apple store on the second floor of the mall.
“It wasn’t coming out of the ceiling, that’s what was interesting to me. It was coming out of the middle of the wall, gushing, almost like a seam had broken in the wall, “ said Natasha Carroll who was shopping at the mall.
There was standing water on the floor. According to the Bellevue Fire Department, 10 stores had water damage.
Water overwhelmed Southcenter Mall in Tukwila, too. A storm drain overflowed, and water went inside the mall. Twelve stores had water but one store had the most damage.
Managements of both malls had workers cleaning up overnight Tuesday.
The storm was strong enough to knock down trees. A tree slammed down onto the Bothell-Everett Highway in Bothell, blocking all lanes through Bothell. Traffic was able to squeeze by on the shoulder.
Neighbor Mary Beth Sommers heard the tree fall, “we heard a crack, and saw the lines shake and I thought - holy crap.”
She got her five goats into their pen, then rushed out to the road to try to warn drivers about the downed tree.
In Redmond, a tree landed on top of two vehicles at an office park. No one was inside when the tree gave way.
Tim Moore works with the men who own the vehicles. He thinks it was a sudden gust of wind that toppled the tree. He felt sorry for his co-workers, but was relieved he’d parked somewhere else.
“I already had a flat tire today, I’m glad it’s not me,” Moore told KIRO 7.
KIRO
