You know it’s November in the Northwest when another Weather Advisory gets posted – this one a “Wind Advisory” predicted to hit around 6pm Sunday night and continue for at least another 24 hours.
As usual, batten down your blue tarps Burien!
Here’s the statement, issued by the National Weather Service at 3:22pm Sunday, Nov. 15th:
Statement as of 3:22 PM PST on November 15, 2009
… Wind Advisory in effect from 6 PM this evening to 6 PM PST Monday…
… High wind watch in effect from Monday evening through Tuesday afternoon…
The National Weather Service in Seattle has issued a Wind Advisory… which is in effect from 6 PM this evening to 6 PM PST Monday. A high wind watch has also been issued. This high wind watch is in effect from Monday evening through Tuesday afternoon.
South winds of 25 to 35 mph with local gusts to 50 mph are expected to develop tonight and continue through much of the day Tuesday.
A deeper low is expected to move north through the coastal waters late Monday night and Tuesday. Widespread damaging winds of 40 mph with gusts to 60 mph are possible with this second deeper system.
Precautionary/preparedness actions…
A Wind Advisory is issued when sustained winds of 30 to 39 mph or gusts of 45 to 57 mph are likely. Winds this strong can snap small tree branches… topple small or shallow-rooted trees… and cause local power outages.
A high wind watch means conditions are favorable for damaging winds. High winds can topple trees… down power lines… and damage some structures. People in the watch area should prepare for the possibility of power outages.
The National Weather Service issued a “Special Weather Statement” at 4:30pm Thursday (Nov. 12th), warning of a “vigorous cold front” hitting the area Friday morning, bringing rain, wind and snow to the mountains.
Could this be the first breath of ol’ man winter?
Here’s the statement:
… Active weather day expected Friday…
A vigorous cold front will pass southeast across western Washington Friday morning… bringing Rain… Mountain snows… locally windy conditions and possibly snow showers to parts of The Lowlands.
South winds in advance of the front will increase late tonight into early Friday morning… mainly along the coast and parts of the northwest interior including the Admiralty Inlet region. Wind speeds in those areas are expected to reach 20 to 30 mph with a few gusts to 45 mph… mainly in and around the Island County area. After the front passes… winds will become west to southwest down the Strait of Juan de Fuca and across the northwest interior before diminishing through the afternoon. While below Wind Advisory criteria… wind of this strength could blow down a few tree limbs here and there with isolated power outages.
Colder air will surge in behind the front and lower already low snow levels across the region. During the morning hours ahead of the front the snow level will be around 1500 to 2000 feet. The snow level will then gradually drop through the day to around 500 feet by evening. This means some of the highest hills around the region could see a few snow showers late Friday into Friday evening. However… outside of the mountains or the immediate Cascade foothills… little to no snow accumulation is expected.
Dry and tranquil weather will return to the region late Friday night into Saturday.
The National Weather Service issued a “Special Weather Statement” Tuesday Nov. 3rd at 4:57pm, warning of “very strong” winds and rain hitting the area Thursday (Nov. 5th) with gusts possibly as high as 50mph.
Here’s the warning in all its glory:
Statement as of 4:57 PM PST on November 03, 2009
… Windy conditions for the mountains… coast… and northern interior Thursday…
A strong Pacific frontal system will impact western Washington on Thursday. Breezy southeasterly winds on Wednesday night will become south-southwest on Thursday for the north interior and coast increasing to 20 to 30 mph with gust as high as 50 mph.
Winds just above the surface will be very strong on Thursday. Ridgetop winds for the Olympics and lower south facing slopes will range from 45 to 65 mph with higher gusts possible. Ridgetop winds along the southern slopes of the Cascades will also be windy… with sustained winds up to 50 mph possible. The strong winds will also be accompanied by heavy rains… combining for dangerous conditions in the mountains.
So…considered yourself warned, and batten down the blue tarps hatches B-Town.
On the last full day of Summer 2009, with the sun in their eyes and a nice wind on their kites, two adventurous and athletic (and anonymous for now – they couldn’t hear us yelling “Hey, what’s your name?!!”) Kitesurfers enjoyed the afternoon off Burien’s Three Tree Point, and Publisher/Editor Scott Schaefer was there to take these pics:
The National Weather Service issued a “Special Weather Statement” Sunday afternoon about a strong, windy weather system that’s predicted to hit the area Monday night.
We’re no Cliff Mass, but one thing that struck us was the mention of the pressure in this storm, rated at 980 millibars. As comparison, Hurricane Katrina was rated at 920 mb (lower is stronger), and the Inauguration Day storm of 1993 was rated between 972-980 mb (for a great read on northwest storm systems, with info on pressures, click here).
While it’s a powerful system, since the storm will weaken as it pushes inland, wind speeds are predicted to be between 20-35 mph, with gusts up to 45. There could be downed trees and power outages though, so you may want to batten down all those flowers you worked on Sunday.
Here’s the statement:
Statement as of 3:51 PM PDT on May 03, 2009
… Very windy conditions are expected to develop in the western Washington lowlands Monday night and continue through Tuesday morning…
A developing storm system in the central Pacific is expected to deepen to around 980 mb as it moves through the Washington offshore waters toward northern Vancouver Island Monday and Monday night. A strong frontal system associated with this low will move through western Washington Monday night.
A storm and frontal system of this magnitude is more typical of late fall or winter than of early may.
At this point it appears that south winds of 20 to 35 mph with gusts to 45 mph will develop Monday night as the front moves through and continue through the early morning hours on Tuesday. Many deciduous trees are now leafing. So winds of this magnitude may break some large branches and possibly topple a few trees.
Local power outages are possible.
Just when you thought that 2008 couldn’t get any worse as far as winter weather goes comes this new Advisory about another “strong storm” that could blow away your New Year’s Eve hangover this Thursday and Friday:
… Another strong storm could potentially bring windy weather to parts of western Washington Thursday through Friday…
A strong storm system is expected to arrive in two parts Thursday and Thursday night bringing a threat of heavy Rain… Mountain snow… and possibly high winds to parts of western Washington. National Weather Service computer models continue to indicate a high degree of uncertainty regarding the strength and track of the incoming weather system. Latest models have trended toward a weaker surface low tracking into the far south or central Washington coast… and due eastward across the south or central sound. At this time it appears a southern track is more likely… putting the area at greatest risk of high winds over Oregon and extreme southern Washington. The rest of Washington would experience breezy to locally windy conditions at times… especially across the Washington coast south of Aberdeen. If the system tracks slightly further north… high winds could be experienced south of a line from near Kalaloch along the central Washington coast to Tacoma. South winds in this less likely scenario could reach 30 mph with gusts to 45 mph.
Snow will be heavy at times in parts of the Cascades Thursday through Friday resulting in difficult travel conditions and a high avalanche danger. Refer to the latest winter storm and avalanche statements for details.
River flooding across the far southern lower elevation basins is also possible. It appears the skokomish and Chehalis river are at greatest risk of flooding. There could also be areas of urban and small stream flooding affecting the Metro corridor… especially from Everett southward… where the highest rainfall amounts are expected. Refer the latest flood statements for details in the event watches or warnings are issued.
This is a rapidly evolving and complex storm system. A lot of uncertainty still exists so current forecasts should be monitored closely. For more information listen to NOAA Weather Radio or visit www.Weather.Gov/Seattle for the latest statements regarding this storm. People planning travel across the Cascade passes should be prepared for hazardous driving conditions at times through Friday.
Apparently two – count ‘em – two major storms are moving into the Northwest overnight and tomorrow, and here’s the latest “Wind Advisory” from the National Weather Service, which is predicting gusts up to 50mph:
A Wind Advisory remains in effect until 7 am PST Wednesday.
A strong Pacific frontal system will move onto the Washington coast late this evening and across the interior after midnight. South winds will increase to 25 to 35 mph with gusts to 50 mph this evening… .then shift to southwest and slowly decrease by Wednesday morning. Expect the strongest winds over the east Strait to occur behind the front after midnight… where southwesterly winds of 25 to 35 mph with gusts to 50 mph are expected.
Precautionary/preparedness actions…
A Wind Advisory is issued when sustained winds of 30 to 39 mph or gusts of 45 to 57 mph are likely. Winds this strong can snap small tree branches… topple small or shallow rooted trees… and cause local power outages.
And what goes better with a major “Wind Advisory” than a warning from Seattle City Light with the UPPERCASE words: “CITY LIGHT RECOMMENDS CUSTOMERS GET READY” in the title? Notice how they didn’t toss this out Monday morning before we received those surprising, sudden 40+mph gusts:
National Weather Service forecasting gale force winds
SEATTLE – Seattle City Light is preparing its crews for a series of winter wind storms heading our way today through Friday. The storms are expected to bring rain and strong winds to the Puget Sound area through the weekend.
“Living in the Pacific Northwest means you need to be ready for winter storms,” City Light Superintendent Jorge Carrasco said. “Our crews are ready so that if this storm causes any outages, we can restore power as quickly as possible. We have been busy throughout the year clearing tree branches from more than 300 line miles of power lines. Even so, we want our customers to be ready in the event an outage.”
The National Weather Service issued a High Wind Advisory today with a forecast for wind gusts up to 35 mph this evening. A storm with more intense winds is predicted to hit our area on New Years day.
City Light has crews ready to respond and the supplies that may be needed should there be a significant wind event. “We’ve asked the Call Center to remain open tonight,” says Chris Heimgartner, Energy Delivery and Customer Care Officer for City Light. “We are prepared for the possibility of outages occurring throughout our service territory and we can have back-up help available to us quickly if there is significant wind damage. Our main concern is the saturated ground from the snow and rain. Similar to 2006, this can bring down whole trees onto power lines.” City Light has written agreements with other utilities in the region and throughout the West to send back-up crews should the outages and damage be widespread.
If a large-scale storm event occurs, residents should be ready with emergency supplies for at least three days. Items to include are a hand-crank or battery-operated flashlight and radio, fresh batteries, a survival blanket, a first aid kit, pocket tissues and hand sanitizer wipes.
City Light reminds customers to be safe. Downed lines can be dangerous. Also, City Light urges customers to be prepared for any possible outages. Here’s what customers can do if they experience a power outage:
- Do not get within 10’ of any downed wire. Wires should always be assumed to be “live” and dangerous. If someone seeks a downed wire, they should call (206) 706-0051;
- Do not use a barbecue grill or generator inside the house or in a garage that is attached to the house. Do not use a grill or generator near a home air intake vent or near windows;
- Do not use fossil fuel burning auxiliary heating sources;
- Have an emergency power outage kit available and well-stocked. There should be sufficient supplies to last three days for every family member and family pets. Make sure all batteries are fresh. To find out what to put into a kit, go to www.takewinterbystorm.org;
- Know how to manually override electric garage doors, security doors and gates;
- Have a land line phone or fully charged cell phone available – cordless phones won’t work when the power is out;
- Unplug electrical appliances if the power goes out so that when the power comes back on, there won’t be a surge that could damage sensitive electronic equipment;
- Use battery-powered flashlights – not candles or oil lamps;
- Close doors, windows, curtains, and unused fireplace dampers to retain heat if there is an outage;
So…are you ready this time?
Personally, we think this new “Wind Advisory” should’ve been issued Monday around 11:30am (when gusts hit 43mph at Sea-Tac Airport) but we’ll take what we can get, right?
And what we’ll get is wind. Lots of wind. Which means…potential power outages, so be prepared folks.
And now, here’s the latest Weather/Wind Advisory from the National Weather Service:
… Wind Advisory in effect for the interior lowlands from 6 PM this evening to 7 am PST Wednesday…
The National Weather Service in Seattle has issued a Wind Advisory… which is in effect from 6 PM this evening to 7 am PST Wednesday.
A strong Pacific frontal system will move onto the Washington coast around midnight tonight and inland by early Wednesday morning. The strongest winds across most inland areas will occur ahead of the front… with southerly 25 to 35 mph with gusts to 50 mph possible. Expect the strongest winds over the east Strait to occur with the front after midnight… where southwesterly winds of 25 to 35 mph with gusts to 50 mph are possible.
Precautionary/preparedness actions…
A Wind Advisory is issued when sustained winds of 30 to 39 mph or gusts of 45 to 57 mph are likely. Winds this strong can snap small tree branches… topple small or shallow-rooted trees… and cause local power outages.
Starting around 11:30am Monday morning (Dec. 29th), we’ve noticed numerous major wind gusts blowing all sorts of loose garbage and recycling all around Burien.
We don’t remember reading any Weather Advisories on this, so we just checked the NOAA Weather website for live conditions at Sea-Tac Airport, and here’s what we found:
WIND GUSTS UP TO 43 MPH!
Here’s a screenshot from the website:
And here’s a live feed from a webcam at the airport – if there’s no image, or if the airplanes in the image are on their sides, that means the wind gusts are even worse (refresh the page to see the latest image):
The good news from this sudden windstorm?
Kiteboarding’s up at 3 Tree Point!
Please either email us your windstorm pics or add ‘em to our Flickr Group so we can share them!
“Woo! Snow happens even in Burien” by Flickr Photog Crocidillicus
The big storm’s a-comin’ folks, and should hit sometime tonight and continue through Sunday morning.
Most likely there will be significant snowfall in the Burien area (4-8 more inches), since we lie in the zone where the storm will hang out. Also be prepared, as there will be high winds and possibly sleet, which means ice on power lines, tree branches, etc. and you know what that means – power outages.
Here’s the Weather Advisory as of Saturday 12/20/08 at 5:18am:
The Winter Storm Warning is now in effect from 4 PM this afternoon to 10 am PST Sunday.
A major winter storm is on tap for later today into Sunday. Heavy snow is expected to develop along the coast this afternoon and then spread into the interior of western Washington early this evening. Heaviest snow will occur on the Kitsap peninsula… along Hood Canal… and from Olympia and Chehalis west to the central coast near Ocean Shores. 10 to 18 inches of snow is expected close to the Hood Canal. Other locations within this area should get 5 to 12 inches of snow.
Along the I-5 Corridor North of Tacoma… including Seattle and Everett… storm total snowfall of 4 to 8 inches is expected. In general… lighter amounts will occur near the Cascade foothills with heavier amounts farther west along the shores of Puget Sound. Some parts of eastern King County… where wind is a big threat… will receive 1 inch or less of snowfall. The heaviest snowfall is expected between 7 PM tonight and 4 am Sunday morning.
Late tonight into Sunday morning… locations from Tacoma on south through Lewis County and west to the coast the precipitation could possibly change over to sleet or freezing rain. Freezing rain is most likely in Grays Harbor County and the lower Chehalis valley. If more precipitation occurs in the form of freezing rain than snow… then an ice storm would be possible with ice accumulations in excess of one quarter of an inch. This is not a certainty but should be kept in mind. Ice storms are capable of causing power lines and large tree branches to snap and cause major travel disruptions.
Precautionary/preparedness actions…
A Winter Storm Warning means significant amounts of snow… sleet… and ice are expected or occurring. Strong winds are also possible. This will make travel very hazardous or impossible.
Have any cool snow/ice photos to share?
Please either email us or add ‘em to our Flickr Group so we can share them!
Just when you thought the worst was over comes this brand spankin’ new Winter Weather Advisory (as of 4:58 12/18/08) from the National Weather Service – basically, another, even more powerful storm is coming this weekend, with snow, sleet and lots of wind:
… Major winter storm should impact western Washington from late Saturday afternoon through Sunday…
After the current round of snow showers is gone… the next weather system to impact western Washington will arrive on the coast on Saturday afternoon and spread inland on Saturday night. This system will contain a lot of moisture and should bring a wide variety of winter weather conditions to all of western Washington.
Perhaps the most significant impact will be potentially destructive winds in the Cascades and the east Puget Sound lowlands. See the high wind watch issued by this office.
This system will contain a lot of moisture as it spreads over the cold air mass in place. Precipitation should first start in the form of snow as it spreads inland. Heaviest snow amounts should take place along the central coast… in the lower Chehalis valley… over the Kitsap peninsula and the southwest interior.
Snowfall totals could exceed 6 inches for many locations with a few locations reaching a foot in a few places. Strong east winds could then cause blowing and drifting of snow.
Elsewhere… including the Seattle-Tacoma-Everett corridor… snow accumulations are expected but amounts will be less.
Later Saturday night and Sunday morning… a layer of warm air aloft will overspread sub-freezing air at the surface. This could cause snow to mix with or change to sleet and freezing rain… mainly south of a line from Ocean Shores to Everett. If more precipitation falls in the form of freezing rain as opposed to snow… then significant icing in excess of one-quarter inch would be possible in these areas. Ice accumulations of this magnitude can cause power lines to snap… bring down large tree branches… and cause widespread travel disruptions.
Temperatures on Sunday afternoon are forecast to rise a little above freezing for most of the western Washington lowlands… so the threat of freezing rain would end at that time.
This has the potential to be a significant winter storm for much of western Washington. Many of the exact details remain uncertain… so check back for the latest forecasts… watches and warnings as the details of this event become more solid.
Regardless of the details… be prepared for winter weather and significant weather-related disruptions this weekend starting Saturday afternoon.
Note how the forecast mentions “south of a line from Ocean Shores to Everett”?
Here’s a map of that line, and notice where Burien is located:
So…are you ready for this one?
The National Weather Service released this “Winter Storm Watch” warning at 2:10pm Thurs. Dec. 11th:
… Winter Storm Watch in effect from Friday afternoon through late Friday night…
The National Weather Service in Seattle has issued a Winter Storm Watch… which is in effect from Friday afternoon through late Friday night.
Heavy lowland snow is possible over portions of western Washington Friday night.
At this time it appears that the highest probability of accumulating snow in The Lowlands will over the Kitsap peninsula… along the Strait of Juan de Fuca… and in the foothills of the Cascades. Other areas such as the north coast… the areas north of Seattle in the Puget Sound convergence zone area… and at elevations above about 700 feet in the southwest interior… may also see heavy snow accumulations Friday night depending on the exact track and intensity of the incoming storm. Three to five inch accumulations are possible in the lowland watch area.
A majority of current forecast models suggest that snow would begin falling during the late afternoon hours over the Kitsap peninsula and around Hood Canal… then spread into other areas in the watch around the tail end of the evening commute.
Precautionary/preparedness actions…
A Winter Storm Watch means there is a potential for significant snow accumulations that may impact travel. Continue to monitor the latest forecasts.
Also note that Sunday’s forecast looks *very* cold, with a High of just 28°F and a Low of 19°F!
So…batten down the hatches and stock up B-Town! A storm’s a-brewin’!
Courtesy Janet Grella, Sales & Promotion Diva for this here B-Town Blog, comes these photos snapped today down at Three Tree Point, where two kitesurfers took advantage of a gorgeous yet blustery sunny day:
According to Wikipedia:
Kitesurfing, also known as kiteboarding, involves using a power kite to pull a rider through the water on a small surfboard or a kiteboard (which is like a wakeboard). Generally kiteboarding refers to a style of riding known as free-style or wakestyle where as kitesurfing is more waveriding oriented. These two styles usually require different boards and specific performance kites.
A kitesurfer or kiteboarder uses a board with or without foot-straps or bindings, combined with the power of a large controllable kite to propel themself and the board across the water. The sport is still in its infancy, but is rapidly growing in popularity. In 2006, the number of kitesurfers has been estimated at around 150,000 to 210,000, with 114,465 inflatable kites sold that same year.
The sport is becoming safer due to innovations in kite design, safety release systems, and instruction. Many riding styles have evolved to suit different types of riders and conditions, such as wake style, wave riding, freestyle, jumping, and cruising.
Have a great weekend everyone!
As if the rainy and depressing June Gloom weather wasn’t enough, ol’ Mother Nature decided to unleash her angry breath this evening, with the resulting high winds blowing down scaffolding from the under-construction Burien Town Square.
The incident occurred early tonight near the intersection of SW 152nd and 6th Ave SW.
According to authorities, no one was injured.
SOURCE:
