High Wind in Washington, November 28, 2001

Name: High Wind in Washington, November 28, 2001
Start: 2001-11-28T06:00
End: 2001-11-28T09:00
Location: Washington

November 28, 2001 · NWS SEW · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Brief high wind occurred along the Washington coast. One man died when a falling tree hit his vehicle.

The toll

Deaths: 1
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS SEW wrote it up.

Brief high wind occurred along the Washington coast. One man died when a falling tree hit his vehicle.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Seattle, WA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 28, 2:45 AM PST, 3 hours 15 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Nov 28, 2:45 AM PST, 3 hours 15 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
245 AM PST WED NOV 28 2001

.SYNOPSIS...A STRONG FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL MOVE THROUGH THE REGION
TODAY. THIS SYSTEM IS ASSOCIATED WITH DEEP LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM
OFFSHORE. THE AIR MASS OVER THE REGION IS STARTING OFF RATHER
COOL...AND HEAVY SNOW IS EXPECTED IN THE CASCADES TODAY. A VIGOROUS
LOW PRESSURE TROUGH WILL MOVE THROUGH WESTERN WASHINGTON LATE TONIGHT
AND THE LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL GRADUALLY FILL AS IT MOVES INTO
SOUTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA THURSDAY MORNING.

.DISCUSSION...STG FNTL SYS...AND WHAT A DRAMATIC SATIMG THIS MORNING.
MESOETA SHOWS SSW 90KT H850 WINDS ALL ALG THE ORE COAST 18Z TDY.
WMFNT THRU SW WA THIS MORNING...TRIPLE PT LIKELY TO BE THRU WRN WA
MIDDAY. MNLY MDT E PRESGRAD THIS MORNING...HOWEVER A STG GALE IS ON
TAP FOR THE COASTAL WATERS...ALSO THE STRONGEST PRE WMFNT SE PRESGRAD
IS AT THE COAST ARND 15Z. THE HIGH WIND WARNING FOR ORE COAST MAY BE
EXTENDED TO THE S PTN OF THE WA COAST...SO WATCH KPDX FCSTS AND
WARNINGS. I THINK DAMAGING WINDS ARE NOT LIKELY N OF CAPE
SHOALWATER...BUT HAVE EXTENDED THE HIGH WIND WATCH TO 18Z. THIS IS AN
AWFULLY STRONG SYSTEM AND ALTHOUGH SELY WINDS ARE NOT USUALLY
ASSOCIATED W/ DAMAGING WINDS ON WA COAST I WANT TO SEE THIS WMFNT
MAKE LANDFALL BEFORE THE WATCH IS EITHER ENDED OR UPGRADED. ALSO...
GALES STRAIT...ADMIRALTY...NRN WATERS...AND THE WATCH WAS ALSO ISSUED
YDY EVENING FOR THE AREAS WHICH CORRESPOND TO GALES IN THE MARINE
FCSTS. W/ STRONGEST MID LEVEL WIND INTO WRN ORE TDY THE OLYMPIC
MESOLOW SHUD NOT BE UNUSUAL...06Z MESOETA DOES SHOW A BIT OF A SEQUIM
MESOLOW...BUT NOT ENUF TO GO WARNING.

MTNS...UPGRADE THE WATCH TO WARNING FOR HVY SNOW AND WINDY. I AM
GOING TO REMOVE THE MENTION OF FREEZING RAIN...AN ISOTHERMAL -2C
SOUNDING IN STG WAA IS FOLLOWED BY 0C AT H850 IN CAA TNGT. KSMP ASOS
MAY REPORT A MIX LATER TODAY...BUT A GLAZY MIDWEST STYLE ZR EVENT IS
EXTREMELY UNLIKELY. JUST EXPECT A HEAVY SNOW AND WIND...FOLLOWED BY A
SIX HOUR MIX OUT AND WARM UP THIS EVENING...THEN SHUD GO BACK TO SNOW
OVERNITE. WILL PEG SNWLVL BETWEEN SNOQ AND STEV TNGT FOR NOW.
24 HOUR TOTAL CASCD SNOWFALL ENDING 6AM THU SHUD RANGE ON UP TO TWO
FEET...THE TOTAL I EXPECT TO HEAR FROM PARADISE AFTER THEY PLOW OUT
THU MORNING. AM NOT INCLUDING OLYMPICS IN WSW...ALTHOUGH PCPN STARTS
AS SNOW THERE IS A GOOD CHC THAT THE VERY STRONG SW WINDS IN THE
OCFNT THIS AFTERNOON DRIVE SNOW LEVELS UP FARILY HIGH...HURRICANE
RIDGE MAY SURPRISE HOWEVER...CALLING FOR UP TO SIX INCHES OLYMPICS.

PCPN...WRKQPS TOO LIGHT...WILL BEEF UP. ALSO LOOKS TOO LGT FOR THE
TROF/INSTAND OCFNTAND ALSO MODEL PRECIP THU LOOKS TOO LGT. MORNING AS
THE TROF...REALLY  MORE OF AN INSTANT OCCFNT...MOVES THRU WRN WA. FOR
NOW IN THE MTNS ON THU I WILL JUST ADVERTISE SNOW ADVISORY TYPE
SNOWFALL...AS THE MESOETA IS NOT YET SHOWING A LOT OF PCPN THU
MORNING DESPITE WHAT LOOKS LIKE VERY GOOD OROGRAPHICS. H500 TEMPS
COOLING TO ARND -32C ON THU...H850 -7C THU AFTERNOON. WARM ADVECTION
BEGINS AGAIN THU NIGHT AND RAINY FCST THRU FRI...THE OCFNT W/ THAT
NEXT SYSTEM IS PROBABLY TIMES FOR FRI NITE. NO UPDTS TO THE EXTENDED
WHICH SHUD BE SEASONABLY WET AND COOL PACNW W/ BROAD COLD H5 TROF IN
NE PAC. McFarland

UIL +99  SEA +987  OLM +97

.SEW...HIGH WIND WATCH COAST/W PART NRN INTERIOR/N KITSAP/ADMIRALTY
      .WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THE CASCDS TODAY.
      .GALE WARNING ALL MARINE EXCEPT SMALL CRAFT ADV PUGET SOUND.
      .FLOOD WATCH AREAS OF WRN WA.

.KATX...VCP21/CSR21...OPERATIONAL.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Nov 28, 3:30 AM PST, 2 hours 30 minutes before

WAZ001>014-281800-

SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT...COR
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
330 AM PST WED NOV 28 2001

...A LITTLE WET SNOW IS POSSIBLE IN THE LOWLANDS THIS MORNING...

A STRONG FRONTAL SYSTEM IS MOVING INTO WESTERN WASHINGTON THIS
MORNING. THE AIR MASS IS QUITE COOL...AND SOME WET SNOW WILL PROBABLY
FALL IN A FEW LOCATIONS THIS MORNING. BECAUSE THE GROUND IS WARM AND
WET...IT IS NOT LIKELY THAT THERE WILL BE ANY ACCUMULATION BELOW 1500
FEET ELEVATION. AND ANY SNOWFALL SHOULD QUICKLY TURN TO RAIN LATER
THIS MORNING AS A WARM FRONT SWEEPS THROUGH THE REGION.

THE MOST LIKELY AREA TO SEE WET SNOW THIS MORNING IS THE FOOTHILLS OF
THE OLYMPICS NEAR HOOD CANAL. ANYWHERE FROM SHELTON NORTH TO PORT
TOWNSEND AND OVER TO PORT ANGELES COULD SEE A LITTLE OF THE WHITE
STUFF THIS MORNING.

THE SNOW LEVEL IS QUITE LOW IN THE CASCADES...SO WET SNOW WILL
PROBABLY FALL IN AREAS BELOW 1500 FEET. THE FORECAST CALLS FOR HEAVY
SNOW IN THE CASCADES TODAY AND A WINTER STORM WARNING IS IN
EFFECT...BUT THE WARNING IS DIRECTED AT HIGHER ELEVATIONS SINCE THE
SNOW LEVEL WILL RISE THROUGH THE DAY TODAY.

MM
(CORRECTED THE NAME OF THE STATEMENT TO SPS)

Event by event

1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, W Clallam/W Jefferson

When: November 28, 6:00 AM PST to 9:00 AM PST
Where: W Clallam/W Jefferson forecast zone
Measured: 52 kt (60 mph)
Deaths: 1 direct, 0 indirect
Reported by: NEWSPAPER

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

Event	Date	Age	Sex	Where	Kind
High Wind, W Clallam/W Jefferson	2001-11-28	55	Male	Vehicle/Towed Trailer	Direct

What these are

High Wind: Sustained non-thunderstorm winds of 40 mph or more for an hour, or gusts of 58 mph or more.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Washington in 2001 Every state in 2001 This day in weather history Warnings in Washington, November 2001

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5273091.