Pacific Northwest windstorms are extratropical cyclones which form in the Pacific basin, and affect land areas in the Pacific Northwest of the United States and British Columbia, Canada. Despite cold waters preventing tropical cyclones from approaching the area, the area is often affected by extratropical cyclones. These cyclones can produce winds equivalent to a Category 2-3 hurricane. The area's trees greatly enhance the damage, and these storms have caused at least $10 billion in damage since 1950. The closest analog to these storms are European windstorms, which develop over the eastern portion of the North Atlantic Ocean as opposed to the North Pacific.