Weather threats converge on Whatcom as new storm hits
Downtown Everson escaped flooding as the Nooksack River crested below flood stage, but torrents of water from a warm, wet storm were still threatening Ferndale and other areas downstream Tuesday, Dec. 27.
Whatcom County was facing several weather hazards from the storm, which also was bringing strong winds, causing coastal flooding from storm surge and seasonal king tides, and raising landslide concerns because of rain-saturated ground.
It’s part of a series of Pacific storms that have brought nearly 2 inches of rain in four days as measured at Bellingham International Airport, with temperatures around 50 degrees that melted nearly a foot of lowland snow — creating soggy soil that could allow landslides or topple trees by undermining their root systems.
But rain is supposed to ease to showers on Wednesday, Dec. 28, giving Western Washington a bit of a reprieve.
“We’re trying to stay on top of these things as they change,” said Wally Kost of the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office Division of Emergency Management.
Many of the weather-related threats have eased, but a wind advisory was issued through early Wednesday, Dec. 28, and officials are still watching the Nooksack River at Ferndale.
U.S. Army Corps of Engineer specialists were inspecting levees along the Nooksack River system where the water crested below flood stage Tuesday, Kost said.
“We’ve rounded the curve,” he told The Bellingham Herald in a telephone interview from the county’s Emergency Operations Center, which was activated during last week’s snowstorm and had remained staffed 24/7 through a dangerous silver thaw, power outages, a windstorm and now flooding.
Ferndale threat
Rain has been falling on snow in the Mount Baker wilderness, engorging the Nooksack River and threatening downstream. communities.
Riley Sweeney, spokesman for the city of Ferndale, told The Herald that city officials were keeping an eye on the river and data from the Northwest River Forecast center,
“Currently the river is predicted to crest at 18.18 feet in Ferndale which usually results in some minor traffic impacts, the closing of Slater Road, a detour around Labounty, but very little impacts to people or property,” Sweeney said.
“(But) weather conditions can change quickly so we urge everyone to keep an eye on the county sheriff’s social media pages just in case things take a turn for the worse,” he said.
He said evacuations or emergency shelters likely would not be necessary.
Hovander Homestead Park was closed Tuesday because of the threat of flooding, the Whatcom County Parks and Recreation Department said in an email.
Storm surge
Tuesday’s storm was pushing a deep low-pressure trough, which worsened the seasonally extreme high tide of 10 feet 7 inches at 9:26 a.m. Tuesday, Kost said.
But winds were mostly out of the south Tuesday morning and didn’t add to the combination of storm surge and high tide, he said.
Randy Small of Lynden, who manages who Whatcom County Weather page on Facebook, live-streamed a report that showed about 6 inches to 1 foot of water over Birch Bay Drive at Jackson Road about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.
“If it was windy right now, we’d see some major waves hitting these houses. This is a big bullet gonna be dodged,” Small said in his live-stream.
Some of the floodwater was from Terrell Creek, which backed up at high tide, he said.
Small’s video showed water lapping at seaside homes on the west of Birch Bay Drive, close to the shoreline.
Strong wind
A wind advisory was in effect until 1 a.m. Wednesday for south winds at 20 to 30 mph, gusting to 50 mph, the National Weather Service said.
Winds were expected to shift to west later Tuesday, according to the online forecast.
Areas south of Whatcom County, especially Seattle and the southern Puget Sound, were expected to see stronger and more damaging winds, according to the forecast.
“The winds (Tuesday) night will have a longer duration also increasing the odds of fallen trees. Low will continue to weaken and move northeast overnight with surface gradients relaxing over the area early Wednesday morning,” said meteorologist Dana Felton in the online forecast discussion.
Mt. Baker Ski Area was open Tuesday with heavy snowfall expected as temperatures dropped at higher elevations.
Avalanche danger was “considerable” in the Mount Baker wilderness, according to the Northwest Avalanche Center.
Mount Baker Highway was open Tuesday and the road was bare and wet with ice in places, the Washington State Department of Transportation said online.
Traction tires were advised.
This story was originally published December 27, 2022 at 12:02 PM.
