Incoming storm to bring wind, flooding to western Whatcom County

An incoming storm is expected to bring strong winds to western Whatcom County starting Wednesday afternoon, March 9, with possible coastal flooding early Thursday.

The National Weather Service has issued a high wind warning through 9 a.m. Thursday. Forecasters are expecting southeast winds to increase to 20 to 35 mph as the day goes on. After midnight through Thursday morning, sustained winds could be 30 to 40 mph with gusts to 60 mph.

Winds that strong could cause power outages.

A gale warning has been issued, calling for winds reaching 30 to 40 knots after midnight and wind wave heights of 4 to 7 feet.

The storm combined with high tide could cause some flooding along the coast Thursday morning, including at Birch Bay, Sandy Point and Point Roberts. At Cherry Point, the National Weather Service expects the 6:12 a.m. high tide could be about 2 feet above the level called for in tide charts.

The storm also is expected to bring heavy rain at times. Rain or showers are in the Bellingham-area forecast through the weekend.

This story was originally published March 9, 2016 at 1:36 PM with the headline "Incoming storm to bring wind, flooding to western Whatcom County."