High Wind in Washington, October 5, 2001

Name: High Wind in Washington, October 5, 2001
Start: 2001-10-05T12:00
End: 2001-10-05T16:00
Location: Washington

October 5, 2001 · NWS PQR · 1 event in 1 county or zone

High winds downed power lines, knocking out power to more than 2300 users in Vancouver and northern Clark County.

The toll

Deaths: 0
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 PQR wrote it up.

High winds downed power lines, knocking out power to more than 2300 users in Vancouver and northern Clark County.

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 Portland, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Oct 5, 8:25 AM PST, 3 hours 35 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Oct 5, 8:25 AM PST, 3 hours 35 minutes before

NORTHWEST OREGON AND SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
925 AM PDT FRI OCT 5 2001

...UPDATED ADVISORIES...

.SYNOPSIS...OFFSHORE FLOW WEAKENING TODAY AND EARLY TONIGHT. ONSHORE
FLOW ALONG THE COAST SPREADING INLAND TONIGHT. UPPER TROUGH MOVING
THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA SATURDAY FOR CLOUDY CONDITIONS AND POSSIBLE
SPRINKLES NEAR THE MOUNTAINS. ANOTHER MORE CONSOLIDATED SYSTEM FOR
LATER SUNDAY THROUGH MONDAY. A THIRD SYSTEM POSSIBLE BY WEDNESDAY.

.DISCUSSION...FOG AND LOW CLOUDS HAVE PUSHED NORTH PASSED ASTORIA
ALONG THE COAST...AND SPREAD INLAND THROUGH THE UMPQUA GAP INTO THE
SOUTHERN VALLEYS. COAST LIKELY TO REMAIN CLOUDY TODAY AS THE THERMAL
TROUGH SHIFTS TO NEAR THE CASCADES LATE TODAY AND EAST TONIGHT. EAST
WINDS THIS MORNING ESPECIALLY NORTHERN AND EASTERN AREAS WILL LET UP
LATER TODAY AND TURN ONSHORE ALL AREAS BY EARLY TONIGHT.

MORNING MODELS FLIP FLOPPING IN NOW HOLDING TOGETHER NEXT TROUGH
BETTER FOR LATE TONIGHT AND SATURDAY. STRONG ONSHORE FLOW AND
DEEPENING MARINE LAYER TO ABOVE THE CASCADE CREST SATURDAY WILL LEAD
TO A CLOUDY AND MUCH COOLER DAY. COULD SEE SOME SPRINKLES AS THE
MARINE LAYER OVERTURNS INLAND. WILL SHOW THIS NEAR THE MOUNTAINS BUT
WAIT UNTIL AFTERNOON PACKAGE TO HAVE A LOOK AT THE NEW AVIATION
BEFORE ADDING TO VALLEYS.

NEXT SYSTEM STILL ON TAP SUNDAY...MAINLY AFTERNOON. NO CHANGES HERE
AT THIS TIME.

.EXTENDED...MODELS STILL SHOW PLENTY OF SHOWERS FOR MONDAY IN POST
FRONTAL AIR. MODELS SHOW SNOW LEVELS APPROACHING CASCADE PASSES AND
MAY NEED TO ISSUE STATEMENT LATER FOR THIS. THEN ANOTHER SYSTEM BY
WEDNESDAY. MODELS IN REASONABLE AGREEMENT ON MORE ACTIVE PERIOD NEXT
WEEK. NO CHANGES FOR NOW. TOLLESON

AST 022 PDX 001 SLE 001 EUG 001

.PQR...RED FLAG WARNING THROUGH NOON TODAY FOR DRY EAST WINDS
          CASCADES WEST SLOPES.
       SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR ROUGH COLUMBIA RIVER BAR.

Event by event

1 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.

High Wind, Vancouver Area

When: October 5, 12:00 PM PST to 4:00 PM PST
Where: Vancouver Area forecast zone
Measured: 45 kt (52 mph)
Reported by: UTILITY COMPANY

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, October 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: 5271290.