October-like weather arrived in the Portland Metro area Wednesday, knocking down trees and tyinh up traffic in a freak mid-August storm. But late Wednesday night, it was expected to lose strength and move out.

Crews scrambled to restore power in parts of the city early Wednesday. On SE 148 and Bush, a falling tree snagged power lines. Fallen trees on SW Taylor's Ferry and even I-5 near Wilsonville led to traffic tie-ups.

And the summer rain was blamed for several minor accidents during rush hour.

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The colder and wet weather won't stay for long. This weekend high temperatures will return to the upper 80s and near 90 degrees, according to KGW Meteorologist Dave Salesky.

Higher winds were expected to batter the Coast, topping out at perhaps 60-miles-an-hour.

"It's going to be a roller coaster. Just grab hold and enjoy the ride," he said.

Thursday, sunnier skies were expected with temps rising into the 70s.
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Powerful thunder storms pushed through Oregon and Southwest Washington Monday morning, drenching the Portland area and sparking wildfires around Mt. Hood and in central Oregon.

Lightning strikes sparked at least 25 small wildfires in the Mt. Hood National forest Sunday night, according to officials with the Interagency Fire Center.

In central Oregon, a complex of at least four wildfires were first reported late Sunday and are burning on state-protected private land and federal forestlands. The fires, known as the Summit Springs Complex, range in size from a few trees to over 1200 acres. They're located over a large area between 10 and 20 miles north of Sisters, Ore.

More: Fire threatens Central Ore. town

"We've gotten more than 1,400 lightning strikes across the state in the last hour," KGW Meteorologist Dave Salesky said Monday morning.

In Portland, lightning struck a utility pole at SE 3rd and Stark Street. No one was hurt. Several thousand customers also lost power during the morning.

An unusually humid airmass and upper-level disturbance was behind the weather pattern, which was moving north.

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