Whatcom’s weekend weather will be blustery with these possible hazards
A blustery weekend lies ahead for Whatcom County, with coastal flooding possible from storm surge, wind and high tides, according to the latest forecast from the National Weather Service in Seattle.
Winds will be coming from the southeast, tracking north toward the British Columbia coast, a meteorologist said in the online forecast discussion.
“Gusty winds could lead to isolated power outages, downed trees, and unsecured objects to be blown around. Breezy conditions continue along the Pacific Coast. Coastal flooding concerns across much of the interior area on Friday (Jan. 6),” according to the online forecast discussion.
Environment Canada issued gale warnings for the Strait of Georgia south of Nanaimo through Friday and the National Weather Service issued a posted flood advisory for western Whatcom County through Friday, said John Gargett, deputy director of the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office Division of Emergency Management.
“At this point, it does not appear that even with storm surge and the gale warning, that we will have significant impacts,” Gargett said in a statement.
A high tide of 10 feet 1 inch is set for 6:43 a.m. Friday a Birch Bay State Park, according to the website Tides.net.
Homes in Sandy Point were surrounded by water for several days and waves washed across Birch Bay Drive during a recent set of seasonally high “king” tides that coincided with a storm.
Minor flooding was reported at Boulevard Park in Bellingham and other seaside locations.
Periods of rain are expected through the weekend, with river flooding a concern in some parts of Western Washington but not the Nooksack River, according to current data from the Northwest River Forecast Center.
Warmer temperatures are expected for the next few days, with daytime highs around 50 degrees and overnight lows around 40.
Bellingham matched a record high temperature Thursday, Jan. 5, as the mercury hit 61 at Bellingham International Airport. — tying the mark from 2006.
Snow is forecast for the North Cascades above 4,400 feet.
Avalanche danger was “considerable”” in the Mount Baker wilderness, according to the Northwest Avalanche Center.
