Power outages were reported across the eastern Coachella Valley Monday as gusty winds hammered the region, resulting in downed trees and power poles.
The Imperial Irrigation District reported at 5:30 p.m. on social media that an unspecified amount of customers had lost power in Indio La Quinta, Mecca, Thermal and Bermuda Dunes.
A cause for outages was not given, although the Indio Police Department reported about that time that Indio Boulevard was closed in both directions at Madison Street due to downed power poles.
Traffic was also affected on Highway 111 west of Las Palmas Road due to downed trees, police said.
An estimated time of restoration was not provided, and neither was an estimated time that the Indio roadways would be cleared.
Imperial Irrigation District crews were working to restore electricity to the affected areas, officials said.
A windblown dust advisory was in place in the San Gorgonio Pass and the Coachella Valley Monday due to the strong gusts. The National Weather Service said the westerly gusts could reach 70 mph in the mountains and deserts.
Forecasters said winds will begin to die down by Monday night and should subside by Tuesday.