Bomb cyclone to bring blustery days for Puget Sound and Western WA
Nov. 18, 2024 at 11:19 am
Against the backdrop of a moody sky, sunlight illuminates a ferry traveling on Elliott Bay in Seattle Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (Erika Schultz / The Seattle Times)
By
Conrad Swanson
Seattle Times climate reporter
Expect wind early this week, lots of wind.
A strong low-pressure system off the Pacific Coast will make landfall Tuesday, bringing with it high-speed gusts and perhaps some rain.
The system is so strong, in fact, that it’s classified as a bomb cyclone, said Maddie Kristell, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.
Low pressure, combined with the winter king tides — which began over the weekend — have meant flooding in the past, especially in the lower areas along the Duwamish River, though Kristell said meteorologists don’t expect it this time around.
Wind gusts should start Tuesday afternoon, Kristell said. Off the coast, winds could reach 70 mph with waters rising up to 27 feet higher than normal. Inland, the winds should calm a bit at a sustained 35-40 mph around Puget Sound.
Gusts around the Cascade foothills and Bellevue could reach as high as 65 mph, however, the National Weather Service posted on social media Monday morning.
The worst of the wind is likely to miss Washington and hit the northwest portion of Vancouver Island, Kristell said.
Rain is likely to accompany the wind, alongside some snow in the higher elevations, Kristell said.
Low pressure systems are typical for this time of year, Kristell said. Stronger bomb cyclones, classified due to massive pressure drops in a single day, are less common, though the region has been seeing one or two a year recently. One early last year soaked California, flooding neighborhoods, knocking out power for tens of thousands and contributing to two deaths.
This week’s system spans much of the West Coast, Kristell said, from Vancouver Island to Northern California.
These weather patterns mean less downward pressure on ocean water, so waves and tides rise higher than normal. This is significant at this point of the year, when tides are already at their highest. A similar combination in 2022 led to widespread flooding in Seattle’s South Park neighborhood, overturning the lives of multiple families there.
However, heavy rains formed a crucial component of the 2022 floods and the region isn’t expecting as much precipitation this year, Kristell said. Meteorologists are anticipating minor to moderate flooding this time around, she said.
Plus, the winds will be blowing east to west, which should help tamp down the tides a bit, Kristell said.
“It’s gonna be close,” Kristell said.
The winds should drop midday Wednesday, Kristell said, though a bit of rain is likely to continue later into the week.
Conrad Swanson: 206-464-3805 or cswanson@seattletimes.com; Conrad covers climate change and its intersection with environmental and political issues.
seattletimes.com |
