As many as 108 million Americans across the United States will or have been affected with storms and severe weather over the weekend and into this week.

Devastating storms that included unique weather phenomenon pummeled the west coast of the United States during the weekend.

The weather phenomenon included a bomb cyclone and atmospheric river effect that helped to make the storms extremely severe.

A bomb cyclone forms when air pressure quickly drops as the storm explosively strengthens and pulls tropical moisture from the Pacific, creating an “atmospheric river.” The “river” has been compared to a fire hose of moisture in the sky that offers intense rain and mountain snow.

More than 160,000 homes and businesses in California, greater than 170,000 homes and businesses in Washington, and more than 28,000 in Oregon were affected. Many were left without power on Sunday. Moreover, two people were killed when a tree fell on a vehicle in the Seattle area.

Flooding in the San Francisco Bay region forced authorities to close streets in Berkeley and overwhelmed the Bay Bridge toll plaza in Oakland. In just a 12 hour period Mount Tamalpais located just north of San Francisco was drenched with a record half a foot of rain, according to the Weather Service.

Roads have been submerged under two feet of water in San Rafael. The National Weather service in Sacramento predicted historic rainfall for the downtown area.

In Butte County, north of Sacramento, Highway Patrol shutdown State Route 70 because of mudslides and debris flows in the vicinity of the now-contained Caldor Fire that charred more than 346 square miles of the Sierra Nevada and scorched hundreds of homes.

The wildfires made conditions ideal for mudslides and flash flooding because much of the vegetation had been stripped away so the soil couldn’t absorb the water. The weather service in Sacramento Tweeted a warning to residents of fire areas that it was too late to try to evacuate due to the debris flow and advised people to shelter in place.

Parts of California, including the Santa Cruz Mountains and sections of western Santa Barbara County, were evacuated because of conditions left by the wildfires.

Weather officials guessed that some areas of the state would be pummeled with a foot of rain or eight feet of snow in the mountains.

The storms were worst in the northern and central sections of California and sections of southern Oregon. The most intense weather is expected to hit on Monday. Rainfall of up to two inches an hour has been forecasted, resulting in major flooding and mudslides that could threaten lives and property.

The weather service announced that downtown San Francisco was drenched with record setting rainfall. It was the fourth wettest day ever for the city since the Gold Rush years.

According to poweroutages.us, at 10:47 a.m. east coast time, the power outages numbers due to the storms were:

• California 114,568
• Washington 60,762
• Oregon 4,336

Meanwhile, a suspected tornado ravaged the Midwest including Missouri and Illinois. In St. Mary, Missouri a tornado damaged buildings and knocked out power along the state line between Missouri and Illinois and damaged a number of other places in the two states.

St. Mary, a town of several hundred, suffered a blackout. Power outages were reported in sections of Missouri and parts of Illinois.

The storm then barrowed into the Ohio Valley on Monday.

According to forecasters, more storms are expected to strike later in the week. On Tuesday, segments of Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas could experience severe storms, said the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma. The guess is that these storms will include hail, strong winds, and isolated tornadoes.

According to poweroutage.us, power outages in Illinois have reached 18,602 and in Missouri, outrages number 5,304.

Severe weather is a threat no matter the season. Consider protecting your home and your family with a standalone generator to counter blackouts. APElectric has a wide range of generators on hand for purchase. The generators are made by some of the most popular generator manufacturers in the country including Generac, Firman, Briggs & Stratton, Kohler, and Guardian. The company has a large inventory to choose from. Many models feature Wi-Fi so that you can monitor and control the generator from anywhere on Earth. Visit the company’s website to review the products available and also find information on how to select the proper generator for your situation.