PORTLAND, Ore. - A rare overnight thunderstorm rolled over the Portland metropolitan area early Thursday morning, hammering the area with lightning strikes, crashing peals of thunder and heavy rain downpours.

Lightning strikes hit trees and power poles, downed electrical lines and started one small fire in the northwest Portland industrial district that crews quickly contained.

No injuries related to the storm have been reported.

Several intrepid photographers and videographers sent in their home videos and some spectacular photos of the storm to our YouNews section. Some photos are posted below this story.

This reporter was awakened at about 3 a.m. as thunder and lightning struck in northeast Portland near the intersection of Interstate 84 and Northeast Halsey Street.

One brilliantly bright lightning bolt hit near my home and was immediately followed by thunder so loud it rattled the house and woke my family.

A heavy downpour of rain soon followed.

The storm cells then moved north up the Interstate 5 corridor into the Seattle and the Puget Sound area where severe weather warnings were in effect Thursday morning as commuters headed to work.

According to KATU Meteorologist Rhonda Shelby, thunderstorms at night are rare in the Willamette Valley, as most storm cells dissipate after sunset.

However, humid, warm air being pushed into the region from the south has repeatedly built up storm cells that have persisted after dark, especially in mountainous regions and in eastern Oregon locations.

A few storm cells have managed to slip into the Willamette Valley, but Shelby said the last round of storm cells are probably the last to move through the area before a more settled and warm weather pattern takes over.

Mountain regions and eastern Gorge locations may see more thunderstorm activity on Thursday afternoon.

The forecast for the Portland metro area for Thursday  and the Fourth of July includes more humid weather with a much lower possibility of thunderstorms, and then warm and clear weather beginning Saturday.







And from Seattle: