Thursday, December 14, 2006

Another Stormy Day

The early morning news shows trees toppled, big surf,downed power lines, even a plane having a difficult time landing at Seattle-Tacoma Int'l Airport.  Apparently it's going to be worse today.  Again, I'm off to work today then I'll be off until Monday. 

I've been getting Christmas cards everyday..many from England...it's so fun to get cards from my dear AOL Journal friends across the seas.  Thank you all.

Have a good Thursday...here's the latest weather email from KOMO TV in Seattle;

"Dear Linda,
Today begins with light wind and then rain increases during and it gets breezy with a SE wind @ 10-25 mph.

A HIGH WIND Warning is in effect for all of western Washington for Later this afternoon into Friday morning.

The forecasting models have been surprisingly consistent in both the general strength and track of this new storm. There are a few minor differences, but every model we have is on the same page, and any of the scenarios painted now lead to strong wind.

What they're showing is a very deep area of low pressure (roughly 28.64" for central pressure) that is forecast form and move across the northwestern tip of Washington and/or southern Vancouver Island around Thursday evening. As long as the track is somewhere in that vicinity and passes to the north of Seattle, but not too far north, that classic recipe for a strong windstorm in Western Washington, so this really bears watching.

The first place to get the wind will be the coast and Northwest Interior, which usually gets a "pre-storm" southeast wind. The wind will pick up around midday and early afternoon and gust to around 45-50 mph. Once the storm approaches and passes the coast in the late evening, winds will shift to the southwest and pick up in all areas.

Timing for the winds to increase in the Seattle area will be somewhere between 7 p.m. and 3 a.m. (models are still a little uncertain on the storms exact arrival.) Although it will get very breezy later this afternoon.

Winds will pick up quickly and blow sustained 40 mph gusting as high as 65 mph through the night and into Friday morning. This is for everyone. Seattle, Tacoma, Everett, Bellingham, Olympia, foothills, south, west, east, north -- everywhere. (We've had a lot of people ask about what to expect at Qwest Field for the Seahawks game.

The odds are decent that the severe winds will hold off until after the game ends -- might be a windy drive home though. And in the interim before the wind arrives, it will be absolutely pouring. So rain will probably be a larger factor than the wind.)

Saving the highest gusts for last A third wrinkle comes as the storm passes to the east of the I-5 corridor. A very strong push of west wind is expected in the storm's wake for the coast and Strait of Juan de Fuca.

It is possible to see winds along the coast, northern Olympic Peninsula (Port Angeles, Sequim, Pt. Townsend) and Whidbey Island of 40-60 mph with gusts as high as 80 mph -- maybe even a touch higher in strong gusts. So people in these areas need to really be cautious and take precautions now. (Whidbey Island would be at the end of that rush of wind coming down the Strait).

The rain and winds will stick around through Friday morning, then begin to taper off through the day, leaving scattered showers in the wake. Some of those showers could be pretty heavy though, and would not be surprised to see more thunderstorms and even some hail. Temperatures will cool through the day to the mid 40s as cooler air moves in behind the front.
Updated Thursday 4:25 a.m. more...
Sincerely,
KOMO 4 Weathercaster Jim Castillo"

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Your weather sounds awful ~ Hope you keep safe and warm ~ and your power stays on ~ Hope that the passengers on that plane are OK  ~ Ally

Anonymous said...

Did I sleep through more wind last night?  I must be doing so much better than I imagined!  Keep warm and dry - hopefully our power stays on.

How fun it must be getting cards from England.  When I was a teen, I had many pen-pals from England and even got to meet several - how I miss them!  I have to get my cards sent out, half are finally completed.  Hopefully I can work on the last half tonight at work.

Monica

Anonymous said...

Hello Linda,

What awful weather you are having over there.  It`s been very windy for the last few days here too, but not as bad as that.  Perhaps we`re getting the tail end of your weather.  Thanks for your Christmas card, it arrived this morning. :o)

Love Sandra xxxx

Anonymous said...

You just keep getting this awful weather I received your lovely card at the beggining of the week thankyou ..love Jan x

Anonymous said...

The weather there sounds dire! I hope your days off work are good and you get everything done that you want. Jeannette xx  http://beta.journals.aol.co.uk/jlocorriere05/Welcometomytravels/