GEORGETOWN, Guyana (AP) — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Wednesday he would share technology for combatting seaweed infestation with Caribbean nations, as he visited Guyana in the first such visit by an Indian leader in more than 50 years.
Guyana, a South American nation with many citizens of Indian origin, serves as headquarters for the 15-member Caribbean trade bloc known as Caricom, and Modi met with regional leaders Wednesday as part of the India-Caricom summit. They last met in 2019.
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Visitors line up to eat after attending a meeting between India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Guyana's President Mohammed Irfaan Ali at the Government House in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi co-chairs the second annual CARICOM-India Summit, in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi gestures to members of Guyana's Hindu community as he arrives from the airport to his hotel in Georgetown, Guyana, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Guyana's President Mohamed Irfaan Ali, left, shakes hands with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he arrives from the airport to his hotel in Georgetown, Guyana, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, left, is welcomed by Guyana's President Mohamed Irfaan Ali as he arrives to his hotel in Georgetown, Guyana, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi signs a portrait of himself for a member of Guyana's Hindu community as he arrives to his hotel in Georgetown, Guyana, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi waves to members of Guyana's Hindu community as he arrives from the airport to his hotel in Georgetown, Guyana, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Members of Guyana's Hindu community wait for India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi to arrive to his hotel from the airport in Georgetown, Guyana, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi smiles at the end of a meeting with his Guyanese counterpart, at the Government House in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, left, playfully teases Lilan Ali, the son of Guyana's President Mohammed Irfaan Ali, at Government House in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Guyana's President Mohammed Irfaan Ali, left, and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, plant a tree on the grounds of Government House in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi applauds while Guyana's President Mohammed Irfaan Ali takes the podium at Government House in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi co-chairs the second annual CARICOM-India Summit, in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Modi arrived with promises to help the region in areas including health, energy and agriculture. He also announced more than 1,000 scholarships over the next five years for trade bloc nations, mobile hospitals for rural areas and drug-testing laboratories as well as river and sea ferries for marine transport.
But Caribbean leaders reserved their loudest applause when Modi announced that India had made tremendous progress in converting large quantities of sargassum into fertilizer and other economic uses as he urged the region to take advantage of his offer.
“We are willing to share this with all the countries,” he said, calling the seaweed invasion on beaches in the tourism-dependent region “a very big problem.”
Modi also was thinking of home. Noting Guyana’s growing importance as an oil-producing nation after vast quantities of oil and gas were discovered off its coast in 2015, he said: “Guyana will play an important role in India’s energy security.”
He added that his government also is willing to fully equip at least one government building in each of the trade bloc nations with a solar power system.
Speaking after meeting with Guyanese President Irfaan Ali, the country’s first Muslim leader, Modi promised to help Guyana and the region improve agriculture production, saying food security is important to island nations.
Trade between India and Guyana has strengthened in recent years, with India providing Guyana lines of credit for military passenger planes and funding to buy a fast river ferry that services far-flung jungle areas close to neighboring Venezuela.
Modi also noted that indentured laborers from India were brought to Guyana during the British colonial era and now make a significant contribution to the country. Nearly 40% of the population is East Indian.
Modi’s visit marks the first time an Indian prime minister has come to Guyana since Indira Ghandi in 1968.
Visitors line up to eat after attending a meeting between India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Guyana's President Mohammed Irfaan Ali at the Government House in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi co-chairs the second annual CARICOM-India Summit, in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi gestures to members of Guyana's Hindu community as he arrives from the airport to his hotel in Georgetown, Guyana, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Guyana's President Mohamed Irfaan Ali, left, shakes hands with India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he arrives from the airport to his hotel in Georgetown, Guyana, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, left, is welcomed by Guyana's President Mohamed Irfaan Ali as he arrives to his hotel in Georgetown, Guyana, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi signs a portrait of himself for a member of Guyana's Hindu community as he arrives to his hotel in Georgetown, Guyana, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi waves to members of Guyana's Hindu community as he arrives from the airport to his hotel in Georgetown, Guyana, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Members of Guyana's Hindu community wait for India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi to arrive to his hotel from the airport in Georgetown, Guyana, Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi smiles at the end of a meeting with his Guyanese counterpart, at the Government House in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, left, playfully teases Lilan Ali, the son of Guyana's President Mohammed Irfaan Ali, at Government House in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
Guyana's President Mohammed Irfaan Ali, left, and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, plant a tree on the grounds of Government House in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi applauds while Guyana's President Mohammed Irfaan Ali takes the podium at Government House in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi co-chairs the second annual CARICOM-India Summit, in Georgetown, Guyana, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)
ISSAQUAH, Wash. (AP) — A major storm battered the U.S. Northwest with strong winds and rain, causing widespread power outages, closing schools and downing trees that killed at least two people.
The Weather Prediction Center issued excessive rainfall risks through Friday, and hurricane-force wind warnings were in effect as the strongest atmospheric river — a large plume of moisture — that California and the Pacific Northwest has seen this season overwhelmed the region. The storm system, which hit starting Tuesday, is considered a “ bomb cyclone,” which occurs when a cyclone intensifies rapidly.
In California the weather service extended a flood watch into Saturday for areas north of San Francisco. Up to 16 inches of rain (40 centimeters) was forecast in Northern California and southwestern Oregon through Friday. Dangerous flash flooding, rock slides and debris flows were possible, officials warned.
A winter storm watch was in place for the northern Sierra Nevada above 3,500 feet (1,066 meters), where 15 inches (28 centimeters) of snow was possible over two days. Wind gusts could top 75 mph (120 kph) in mountain areas, forecasters said.
Heavy, wet snow was expected to continue along the Cascades and in parts of far Northern California. Forecasters warned of blizzard and whiteout conditions and near impossible travel at pass level due to accumulation rates of 2 to 3 inches (5 to 7.6 centimeters) per hour and wind gusts of up to 65 mph (105 kph).
Falling trees struck homes and littered roads across western Washington. In Lynnwood, a woman died Tuesday night when a large tree fell on a homeless encampment, South County Fire said in a statement. In Bellevue, east of Seattle, a tree fell on a home and killed a woman, fire officials said.
Tracy Meloy of Issaquah, Washington, felt well-prepared for the storm Tuesday afternoon, with dinner prepped and lanterns ready. But then she spent the night listening to wind-whipped debris hit the outside of her home, including a particularly loud “thump” around 9 p.m. The next morning morning she ventured outside to survey the damage to her neighborhood, about 17 miles (27 kilometers) east of Seattle.
“Now that I’m standing here in front of the house, I can tell it’s the tree that was across the street,” Meloy said. The tree pulled down the power lines in front of her home, and limbs, leaves and other plants were strewn all over the road.
“It looks like a forest floor instead of a street,” she said.
The number of power outage reports in Washington fluctuated wildly Tuesday evening but steadily declined to about 460,000 by Wednesday afternoon, according to poweroutage.us. More than a dozen schools were closed in Seattle alone.
About 2,800 customers were reported to be without power Wednesday in Oregon, 38,000 in California and 10,000 around Carson City and Reno, Nevada. Three Reno schools were closed, and semi-trucks were prohibited on the main highway between the two cities due to high winds. All chairlifts were shut down at the Mt. Rose Ski Resort near Lake Tahoe.
The weather service warned people on the West Coast about the danger of trees during high winds, posting on the social platform X: “Stay safe by avoiding exterior rooms and windows and by using caution when driving.”
Southbound Interstate 5 was closed for an 11-mile (18-kilometer) stretch from Ashland, Oregon, to the California border on Wednesday morning due to extreme winter weather conditions in northern California, according to the Oregon Department of Transportation. It was expected to be a long-term closure, the department said.
The weather service issued a flood watch for parts of southwestern Oregon through Friday evening, while rough winds and seas halted a ferry route in northwestern Washington between Port Townsend and Coupeville for part of the day.
As Robert and Lisa Haynes of Issaquah surveyed the damage in their neighborhood, they saw fallen branches or trees blocking driveways and roads. They were stuck at home.
“It's like a snow day,” Robert Haynes said, “but with no snow.”
In Juneau, Alaska, gusts of wind up to 60 mph (96 kph) were forecast.
To the east, the first significant snow of the season in the Dakotas and Minnesota led to accidents and slippery roadways. The weather service said up to 16 inches (40 centimeters) could fall in the Turtle Mountains of North Dakota, and Minot could get up to 8 inches (20 centimeters).
Officials advised people not no travel throughout northern North Dakota, and state troopers in northern Minnesota responded to several accidents including tractor-trailers that jackknifed on Interstate 94 after the roadway became slippery from snow and ice.
Winds were expected to be problematic in parts of Montana and Nebraska, with gusts up to 60 mph (97 kph), the weather service said.
Golden reported from Seattle and Baumann reported from Bellingham, Washington. Jack Dura in Bismarck, North Dakota; Jim Salter in St. Louis; Scott Sonner in Reno, Nevada; Christopher Weber in Los Angeles; and Becky Bohrer in Juneau, Alaska, contributed.
Kit Leahy, 75, who has not had power since 7 p.m. Tuesday night due to severe weather, attempts to clean up around the home where she rents near Matthews Beach, Wednesday morning, Nov. 20, 2024, in Seattle. (Ken Lambert/The Seattle Times via AP)
Seattle Metro bus has the remnants of a tree removed at 35th Ave. NE and NE 95th St. by Seattle Dept of Transportation in the aftermath of a "bomb cyclone" after severe weather hit last night, in Seattle, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times via AP)
A Pacific Gas & Electric worker pauses while sawing a tree that toppled into power lines during heavy rains on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in the Occidental community of unincorporated Sonoma County, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
Mason Friedline inspects damage to vehicles from severe weather Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Seattle. (Jennifer Buchanan/The Seattle Times via AP)
Brett Gordon of Seattle looks up to where a large branch sheared off from a tree during Tuesday night's "bomb cyclone" weighing down power lines in the Wedgwood neighborhood of Seattle, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Gary Roundtree)
Brett Gordon of Seattle talks with a neighbor as he stands near a large branch sheared off from a tree during Tuesday night's "bomb cyclone," weighing down power lines in the Wedgwood neighborhood of Seattle, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Gary Roundtree)
A truck crosses a flooded road Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Santa Rosa, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
A firefighter clears branches from a tree that toppled into power lines during heavy rains on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in the Occidental community in unincorporated Sonoma County, Calif. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
U.S. Geological Survey Hydrologic technician Isabella Karamitsos works to deploy a sensor to measure water flow as heavy rains impact Santa Rosa, Calif., on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, (AP Photo/Noah Berger)
A crew cuts a tree that fell on a Taco Bell restaurant on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Issaquah, Wash., after a "bomb cyclone" storm brought high winds to the area. (AP Photo/Manuel Valdes)
A crew cuts a tree that fell on a Taco Bell restaurant on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Issaquah, Wash., after a "bomb cyclone" storm brought high winds to the area. (AP Photo/Manuel Valdes)
A car sits abandoned as several downed trees block a street after severe weather hit the area on Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2024, in Bellevue, Wash. (Nick Wagner/The Seattle Times via AP)
A crew cuts a tree that fell on a Taco Bell restaurant Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Issaquah, Wash., after a "bomb cyclone" storm brought high winds to the area. (AP Photo/Manuel Valdes)
A woman was killed after a tree fell on her home during Tuesday night's "bomb cyclone" in severe weather in Bellevue, Wash. (Nick Wagner/The Seattle Times via AP)
Erica Leinbach cleans up debris on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, from fallen trees after a "bomb cyclone" storm brought high winds to Issaquah, Wash. (AP Photo/Manuel Valdes)
Erica Leinbach cleans up debris on Wednesday, November 20, 2024, from fallen trees after a "bomb cyclone'"storm brought high winds to Issaquah, Wash. (AP Photo/Manuel Valdes)
CORRECTS STREET Mel Crawford, with chain saw who was clearing downed branches, and Michelle Grant check out a tree that fell on a Seattle Fire Department emergency vehicle in the aftermath of a "bomb cyclone" on 35th Avenue Northeast after severe weather hit last night, in Seattle , Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times via AP)
CORRECTS STREET Neighbors look at the remains of small car that had a tree fall on it in the aftermath of a "bomb cyclone" on 35th Avenue Northeast after severe weather hit last night, in Seattle, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times via AP)
CORRECTS STREET The aftermath of a "bomb cyclone" on 35th Avenue Northeast after severe weather hit last night, in Seattle, Wednesday, Nov, 20, 2024. (Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times via AP)
Crews work at clearing trees that fell during last night's storm near the Renton Community Center in Renton, Wash., Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Erika Schultz/The Seattle Times via AP)
Seattle Metro bus has the remnants of a tree removed at 35th and NE 95th by Seattle Dept of Transportation in the aftermath of a "bomb cyclone" on NE 35th St. after severe weather hit last night, in Seattle, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times via AP)
Mel Crawford, with chain saw who was clearing downed branches, and Michelle Grant check out a tree that fell on a Seattle Fire Department emergency vehicle in the aftermath of a "bomb cyclone" on NE 35th St. after severe weather hit last night, in Seattle , Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times via AP)
People walk their dog as cars maneuver around downed power lines and trees caused by a "bomb cyclone" storm, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Bellevue, Wash. (Nick Wagne/The Seattle Times via AP)
Crews clean up in the aftermath of a "bomb cyclone" on NE 35th St. after severe weather hit last night, in Seattle, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times via AP)
A a fallen tree pulls on a power line after severe weather hit in Bellevue, Wash. (Nick Wagner/The Seattle Times via AP)
Comcast crews work in off Renton-Maple Valley Road in Renton, Wash., Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Erika Schultz/The Seattle Times via AP)
Neighbors look at the remains of small car that had a tree fall on it in the aftermath of a "bomb cyclone" on NE 35th St. after severe weather hit last night, in Seattle, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times via AP)
The aftermath of a "bomb cyclone" on NE 35th St. after severe weather hit last night, in Seattle, Wednesday, Nov, 20, 2024. (Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times via AP)
People walk along a sidewalk as waves and debris crash into the breakwater after severe weather in Victoria, British Columbia, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Chad Hipolito/The Canadian Press via AP)
People walk along a sidewalk as waves and debris crash into the breakwater after severe weather in Victoria, British Columbia, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Chad Hipolito/The Canadian Press via AP)
Damage is seen in a neighbourhood in Issaquah, Wash., Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, after a 'bomb cyclone' brought high winds to the Pacific Northwest overnight. (AP Photo/Martha Bellisle)
Damage is seen in a neighbourhood in Issaquah, Wash., Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, after a 'bomb cyclone' brought high winds to the Pacific Northwest overnight. (AP Photo/Martha Bellisle)
Damage is seen in a neighborhood in Issaquah, Wash., Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, after a 'bomb cyclone' brought high winds to the Pacific Northwest overnight. (AP Photo/Martha Bellisle)
Damage is seen in a neighborhood in Issaquah, Wash., Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, after a 'bomb cyclone' brought high winds to the Pacific Northwest overnight. (AP Photo/Martha Bellisle)
Damage is seen in a neighborhood in Issaquah, Wash., Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, after a 'bomb cyclone' brought high winds to the Pacific Northwest overnight. (AP Photo/Martha Bellisle)
Damage is seen in a neighborhood in Issaquah, Wash., Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, after a 'bomb cyclone' brought high winds to the Pacific Northwest overnight. (AP Photo/Martha Bellisle)
Seattle Fire Department personnel direct traffic off of NE 80th St. after power lines fell across the street during a major storm Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024, in Seattle. (Jennifer Buchanan/The Seattle Times via AP)
A neighbor looks up the street as a police car blocks 15th Ave NE after trees fell across the road and took down power lines in the Maple Leaf neighborhood during a major storm Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024 in Seattle. (Jennifer Buchanan/The Seattle Times via AP)
A person records damage of a tree and downed power lines during a major storm Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024 in Seattle. (Jennifer Buchanan/The Seattle Times via AP)
A firetruck blocks NE 80th St. at Roosevelt after power lines fell across the street during a major storm Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024 in Seattle. (Jennifer Buchanan/The Seattle Times via AP)
This photo released by Eastside Fire & Rescue shows a tree resting on the roof of a house during a major storm Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024, in Issaquah, Wash. (Eastside Fire & Rescue via AP)
In this image made from video provided by National Weather Service Portland a powerful storm also called a 'bomb cyclone' rotates off the U.S. West Coast on Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (National Weather Service Portland via AP)
This Nov. 19, 2024 satellite image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows an atmospheric river moving in on Northern California and the Pacific Northwest. (NOAA via AP)
In this image provided by Eastside Fire & Rescue, officials survey the scene where a tree fell on a home in Issaquah, Wash., Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2024. (Eastside Fire & Rescue via AP)
