Wet & Windy at 6PM
Sunday, November 12, 2006At 6pm in Vancouver conditions are getting nasty with heavy rain and winds gusting to 30 mph. The barometer is falling like a rock at the present time. The main low center is still off the Washington coast and is expected to move inland around 10 pm tonight or a bit later. Wind speeds in Clark County should still be very strong with possible gusts between 55 and 70 mph. Already winds speeds of 88 mph reported at Cape Blanco on the southern Oregon coast (really exposed headland), and 53 mph on top of the Fremont Bridge in Portland. The NWS has issued a High Wind Warning for our area while all Portland TV weather forecasters are playing down the storm saying only 45 mph gusts at best and that this will not really be a wind storm.
The reason why the NWS issues a warning is to alert the public of the possible dangers and everyone should take heed. The TV folks while expressing their opinion, are doing a diservice to the general public implying the high wind warning has no merit. None of the four channels have included the NWS prediction of 60 mph gusts.
The next few hours will tell the story so stay tuned. I'll be here.
Also, with the heavy rains and easterly gradients, snow was mixing in at many locations between 4 and 6 pm from Beaverton to Forest Grove and some locations in Clark County all the while with temperatures between 38 and 43 degrees. With the convective type of precipitation, that will help drive greater wind speeds from aloft.
-- posted by Pat Timm @ 6:32 PM,
