Strong pressure differences associated with a Pacific frontal system brought high winds to parts of western Washington.
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.
The episode as NWS SEW wrote it up.
Strong pressure differences associated with a Pacific frontal system brought high winds to parts of western Washington.
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 Dec 12, 9:55 AM PST, 1 hour 14 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
955 AM PST FRI DEC 12 2008
.SYNOPSIS...EXPLOSIVELY DEVELOPING LOW PRESSURE WILL MOVE ONSHORE ON
THE NORTH COAST MIDDAY THEN SWEEP THROUGH THE CENTRAL PUGET SOUND
AREA LATE THIS AFTERNOON AS IT TRACKS INTO EASTERN WASHINGTON
OVERNIGHT. ARCTIC OUTFLOW WILL BEGIN SPREADING SOUTHWEST SATURDAY
MORNING AND WILL REACH CENTRAL PUGET SOUND SATURDAY AFTERNOON AND
SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON SATURDAY EVENING. VERY COLD OFFSHORE FLOW WILL
CONTINUE FOR MUCH OF THE UPCOMING WEEK.
LOW PRESSURE IS FORECAST TO
&&
.SHORT TERM...WATER VAPOR...INFRARED...AND MULTISPECTRAL SATELLITE
IMAGERY ALL SHOW THE INCOMING AND VERY RAPIDLY DEEPENING LOW MOVING
ONSHORE AROUND KUIL SHORTLY AFTER NOON THEN EASTWARD ACROSS THE
SEATTLE METRO AREA BEFORE CURLING EAST INTO EASTERN WASHINGTON
OVERNIGHT. THE TRACK OF BOTH THE LATEST GLOBAL AND MESOSCALE MODELS
IS ABOUT 100 MILES FARTHER NORTH THAN EARLIER SOLUTIONS.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? WELL ONSHORE FLOW WILL KEEP TEMPERATURES A DEG
OR TWO WARMER IN THE LOWLANDS ESPECIALLY EVERETT SOUTHWARD. WIND
WILL BE A BIGGER ISSUE AROUND THE STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA THAN
EARLIER THOUGHT. ALSO...DEFORMATION NORTH OF THE LOW TRACK...THAT
WAS PREVIOUSLY EXPECTED TO GIVE HEAVY RAIN RATES TO SEATTLE IS
FARTHER NORTH.
AS A RESULT...WE ARE MAKING THE FOLLOWING CHANGES TO THE FIRST 2
PERIODS OF THE FORECAST...
1. ADDING WIND TO THE STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA AND AREAS AROUND
ADMIRALTY INLET. THIS WILL BE WIND ADVISORY CRITERIA FROM THE WEST
OR NORTHWEST BEHIND THE LOW. THIS WAS ISSUED AROUND 9 AM.
2. WE WILL BE VERY SHORTLY CANCELING THE WINTER STORM WARNING FOR
LOWLAND ZONES EVERETT SOUTHWARD. WE WILL MAINTAIN THE WINTER WEATHER
ADVISORY FOR SNOWFALL FROM ISLAND AND CLALLAM COUNTIES NORTHWARD. WE
WILL ALSO BE MAINTAINING THE WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THE HEAVY SNOW
AND WIND IN THE MOUNTAINS. IN THE LOWLANDS WE COULD STILL SEE SLUSHY
ACCUMULATIONS ON HIGHER HILLS AWAY FROM WATER WITH SNOW LEVELS DOWN
TO NEAR 500 FEET AT TIMES. ANY SNOW THAT DOES ACCUMULATE DOES NOT
APPEAR TO BE WIDESPREAD AND SIGNIFICANT THROUGH EARLY SAT MORNING.
THE ARCTIC BOUNDARY MAY GIVE 1-3 INCHES OF SNOW IN THE LOWLANDS SAT
AFTN AND EVENING AND ONCE ARCTIC OUTFLOW BEGINS...LARGE AMOUNTS ARE
POSSIBLE ALONG THE STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA.
TEMPERATURES WITH ANY SNOW SAT WILL BE AT OR BELOW FREEZING AND A
STIFF NORTH WIND 20 TO 30 MPH WITH TEMPS FALLING INTO THE 20S WILL
FOLLOW THE ARCTIC FRONT. TIMING IS AFTN HOURS SEATTLE AND SAT NIGHT
COAST.
ALBRECHT
.LONG TERM...PREVIOUS LONG TERM DISCUSSION FOLLOWS...NOT MUCH CHANGE
IN THE EXTENDED MODELS THIS MORNING WITH COLD AND DRY OFFSHORE FLOW
CONTINUING INTO THE LATTER PART OF NEXT WEEK. BOTH THE GFS AND THE
EURO CONTINUE TO SHOW A REINFORCING ARCTIC BOUNDARY COMING DOWN WED
MAYBE GIVING A BRIEF SHOT OF SNOW. HIGH TEMPERATURES WILL STRUGGLE
TO GET ABOVE FREEZING OVER THE UPCOMING WEEK. FELTON
&&
.AVIATION...A STRONG AND COLD UPPER LOW OVER WRN BRITISH COLUMBIA
WILL MOVE OVER WRN WA LATER THIS AFTERNOON...AND THEN INTO ERN WA
OVERNIGHT. STRONG WLY FLOW ALOFT...BECMG VARIABLE THIS AFTERNOON...
AND THEN NLY OVERNIGHT. A DEEPENING SURFACE LOW NW OF CAPE FLATTERY
WILL CONTINUE MOVING ESE. THE OCCLUDED FRONT EXTENDING FROM THIS LOW
WILL MOVE ACROSS MUCH OF WRN WA THIS AFTERNOON AND EARLY EVENING.
ANTICIPATE STRONG...LOW LEVEL NLY FLOW TO DEVELOP BEHIND THE FRONT.
KSEA...CIGS WILL LOWER TO NEAR 006 BY 20Z AND SLY WINDS WILL KICK UP
AHEAD OF THE OCCLUDED FRONT. FROPA IS ANTICIPATED ABOUT 00Z. EXPECT
WINDS TO INCREASE FROM THE SSW AT 25 KT WITH GUSTS TO 35 KT WITH THE
FRONT. WINDS WILL GRADUALLY SUBSIDE OVERNIGHT.
IN REGARDS TO SNOW...THE TRACK OF THE SURFACE LOW WAS STILL
PROBLEMATIC. IF IT TRACKS N OF THE AREA...THE POTENTIAL FOR
ACCUMULATING SNOW WILL BE SLIM. IF IT TRACKS JUST S OF THE AREA...
THE POTENTIAL FOR ACCUMULATING SNOW WOULD INCREASE. FOR NOW...WILL
GO WITH THE IDEA OF A MIX OF RAIN AND SLUSHY SNOW TONIGHT...WITH NO
ACCUMULATION.
&&
.MARINE...A 1000 MB SURFACE LOW ABOUT 80 NM W OF CAPE FLATTERY WILL
INTENSIFY TO NEAR 990 MB AS IT MOVES E. THE OCCLUDED FRONT
ASSOCIATED WITH THE LOW WILL SWEEP ACROSS THE AREA THIS AFTERNOON
AND EARLY EVENING. ANTICIPATE STRONG NORTHERLY FLOW TO DEVELOP
BEHIND THE FRONT THAT WILL PERSIST THROUGH SATURDAY.
&&
.SEW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WA...WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THE OLYMPICS AND CASCADES.
.HIGH WIND WARNING FOR THE NORTH AND CENTRAL COAST.
.WIND ADVISORY STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA AND ADMIRALTY INLET
ZONES.
.WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA ZONES...
SAN JUAN ISLANDS...NORTHWEST INTERIOR...AND WESTERN WHATCOM
COUNTY.
.COASTAL FLOOD ADVISORY CENTRAL COAST...EAST
STRAIT...NORTHWEST INTERIOR...AND GREATER PUGET SOUND/HOOD
CANAL AREA.
PZ...STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FOR THE COASTAL WATERS.
.GALE WARNING IN EFFECT FOR THE REMAINING WATERS.
.SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY IN EFFECT FOR ROUGH GRAYS HARBOR
BAR CONDITIONS.
WEATHER.GOV/SEATTLE5 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
Hoquiam had a high wind gust of 50 knots. About 5000 customers lost power in the Ocean Shores area.
A spotter near Lake Lawrence reported sustained wind 45 mph with gusts 61 mph.
Destruction Island had sustained winds of 72 knots, that translate to wind gusts of 75 to 83 mph on the adjoining mainland.
A weather spotter near Port Townsend reported sustained wind 46 mph with gusts 64 mph.
A weather spotter on Lummi Island reported sustained wind 40 mph with gusts 59 mph.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Washington in 2008Every state in 2008This day in weather historyWarnings in Washington, December 2008
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: 141896, 141897, 141895, 141898, 141900.