Update: Change in forecast for damaging winds on Christmas Eve in Whatcom County
It now appears that the worst of an unpredictable and possibly severe windstorm will spare Whatcom County on the day before Christmas, and instead bring lowland rain, mountain snow and strong gusts.
For several days, meteorologists at the National Weather Service in Seattle were saying that there’s a “large degree of uncertainty” surrounding a low-pressure system that could worsen quickly as north winds spin south, gusting between 50 and 60 mph. Winds that strong could cause widespread power outages, the weather service said.
Just after 9 a.m. Wednesday, a high wind warning for the western Whatcom County lowlands was downgraded two steps to an advisory for south winds at 25-35 mph, gusting to 45 or 50 mph.
They were unsure exactly where this “mesocyclone” will hit along the Oregon and Washington coasts as it shifts north from California over the next day and had issued increasing strong alerts until Wednesday morning.
A high-wind warning in effect from 1 to 7 p.m. Wednesday, affecting areas including the western Whatcom County lowlands, was downgraded to a wind advisory at 9:13 a.m.
Strongest winds are expected around midday, as east/northeasterly winds abruptly shift south by midday. WInds were expected to subside through the evening hours.
“South winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts up to 45 mph expected. A gust to 50 mph cannot be ruled out in areas closest to the waters of Puget Sound, the weather service said.
Puget Sound Energy said it is preparing for another round of high wind.
“We know how important the holidays are for spending time with loved ones, and how disruptive it is to be without power, especially after many of you lost power last week. We are watching the forecast closely and getting ready so we can respond quickly if outages occur,” PSE said at its website.
Two key forecast models that Seattle meteorologists are using showed a 60% to 80% of wind gusts stronger than 45 mph for the Puget Sound region.
This is the range of possibilities 24 hours away from the storm’s arrival:
- Seattle: 16 mph to 60 mph
- Bellingham: 11 mph to 73 mph
- Olympia: 20 mph to 62 mph
“(We) have slightly higher confidence in breezy winds generally from Everett southwards,” the weather service said in its online forecast discussion.
This story was originally published December 23, 2025 at 11:43 AM.
