Brief high wind occurred on the central coast and near Bellingham.
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.
Brief high wind occurred on the central coast and near Bellingham.
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 Jan 4, 4:15 AM PST, 43 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
415 AM PST WED JAN 4 2012
.SYNOPSIS...A FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL BRING RAIN AND WIND TO WESTERN
WASHINGTON TODAY. RAIN WILL TRANSITION TO SHOWERS AS THE FRONT MOVES
INTO EASTERN WASHINGTON THIS EVENING. WESTERLY FLOW AND WEAK UPPER
LEVEL TROUGHING WILL PRODUCE SHOWERS...MAINLY IN THE MOUNTAINS...
THROUGH THURSDAY. A WEAK CUT-OFF LOW MAY CLIP THE COAST FRIDAY AND
FRIDAY NIGHT. A WEAK RIDGE WILL PROVIDE DRY WEATHER SATURDAY. A WARM
FRONT MAY BRUSH NORTHERN AREAS LATER IN THE WEEKEND.
&&
.SHORT TERM...THE FIRST BANDS OF RAIN OUT AHEAD OF THE FRONT
OFFSHORE ARE BEGINNING TO TRAVERSE THE COASTLINE FROM SOUTHWEST TO
NORTHEAST. RAIN WILL SPREAD INLAND TODAY...LIKELY HOLDING OFF FOR
THE PUGET SOUND REGION AND CENTRAL CASCADES UNTIL 18Z OR LATER.
SOUTHEAST WINDS HAVE QUICKLY INCREASED OVER THE COAST AND NORTH
INTERIOR. BELLINGHAM AIRPORT IS GUSTING INTO THE LOW 40S FROM THE
SOUTHEAST WITH A TEMPERATURE AROUND 60 DEGREES...LIKELY DUE TO
DOWNSLOPE WARMING OFF THE HILLS TO THEIR SOUTH. THE FRONT WILL PASS
THROUGH THE INTERIOR 21Z. THE WIND ADVISORY CONTIUES FOR THE COAST
AND NORTH INTERIOR WITH BREEZY CONDITIONS ELSEWHERE. EVEN WITH AN
EARLIER FROPA FOR THE COAST...WINDS WILL LIKELY STAY UP THROUGH THE
AFTERNOON AS GUSTY WINDS MIX DOWN.
RAIN WILL TRANSISTION TO SHOWERS THIS EVENING AS THE FRONT PASSES
INTO EASTERN WASHINGTON. HIGH SNOW LEVELS TODAY...AROUND 7000-8000
FEET...WILL FALL TO 4000 FEET OVERNIGHT. MOUNT BAKER HAS THE BEST
SHOT OF PICKING UP ADVISORY LEVEL SNOWFALL. CURRENTLY WE ARE ONLY
FORECASTING ABOUT 6 INCHES BY 18Z THURSDAY...BUT IF COOLER AIR WORKS
IN QUICKLY DURING THE 00-06Z TIMEFRAME AMOUNTS WILL BE HIGHER.
SHOWERS...FOCUSED ON THE WESTERN MTN SLOPES...WILL CONTINUE ON
THURSDAY WITH WEAK TROUGHING ALOFT AND WESTERLY FLOW. A WEAK RIDGE
WILL MOVE OVER THURSDAY NIGHT ENDING THE SHOWERS AND LEAD TO A DRY
PERIOD LASTING THROUGH FRIDAY. A WEAK CUT-OFF LOW WILL DIVE SOUTH
INTO OREGON ON FRIDAY AFTERNOON. HAVE LEFT THE MENTION OF RAIN
SHOWERS FOR THE COAST FRIDAY AFTERNOON AND COAST AND MOUNTAINS
FRIDAY NIGHT AS THE LOW MOVES SOUTH OF US.
.LONG TERM...UPPER LEVEL RIDING LOOKS TO BUILD OUT AROUND 130 W ON
SATURDAY...WITH THE RIDGE AXIS MOVING OVER WESTERN WASHINGTON EARLY
SATURDAY NIGHT. THE NEXT STALLED FRONTAL BOUNDARY AND ASSOCIATED
MOISTURE PLUME TAKES AIMS AT SOUTHERN BRITISH COLUBMIA SATURDAY
NIGHT AND SUNDAY...PERHAPS BRUSHING THE NORTHERN PART OF THE CWA. THE
BAROCLINIC ZONE WILL LIKELY SINK SOUTH OVER THE AREA EARLY NEXT
WEEK. NO CHANGES TO THE LONG RANGE WERE MADE PAST SATURDAY. DAMICO
&&
.HYDROLOGY...A FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE SKOKOMISH RIVER
IN MASON COUNTY THROUGH THURSDAY AFTERNOON.
24 HOUR QPF BEGINNING 12Z THIS MORNING CONTINUES TO SHOW UP TO 3
INCHES FOR THE OLYMPICS. LOCAL FORECAST TOOLS SHOW THAT THIS VOLUME
OF RAINFALL FOR THE SKOKOMISH RIVER BASIN WILL FALL BELOW CRITERIA
TO CAUSE FLOODING ON THE SKOKOMISH. HOWEVER...LATEST RFC GUIDANCE
FORECASTS THE RIVER TO BRUSH ADVISORY STAGE THURSDAY AFTERNOON. THE
FLOOD WATCH WILL LIKELY TRANSITION TO A FLOOD ADVISORY LATER TODAY.
FLOODING IS UNLIKELY ON ALL OTHER RIVERS IN THE FORECAST AREA FOR
THE NEXT 7 DAYS. DAMICO
&&
.AVIATION...A STRONG COLD FRONT OFFSHORE NEAR 130W AT 11Z WILL REACH
THE COAST AROUND 20Z AND THE CASCADES BY 02Z. AHEAD OF THE FRONT...W
WA REMAINS IN THE WARM SECTOR BEHIND AN EARLIER WARM FRONT...SO CIGS
ARE HIGH...GENERALLY BKN060-100. RAIN SHOULD REACH THE CENTRAL COAST
BY 15Z AND SPREAD OVER PUGET SOUND BY 18Z. MODELS INDICATE THAT CIGS
WILL LIKELY DROP TO OVC040-050 WITH THE START OF RAIN...THEN LOWER
QUICKLY TO MVFR. TRAILING UPPER LEVEL TROUGHS WILL PROVIDE ENOUGH
LIFT TO ALLOW MVFR TO PERSIST TONIGHT. STRONG PRESSURE GRADIENTS
WILL PRODUCE GUSTY SE SURFACE WINDS COAST AND N INTERIOR AHEAD OF
THE FRONT.
KSEA...GOOD VFR THROUGH ABOUT 18Z WITH CIGS BKN060-100. CIGS WILL
LOWER TO AROUND BKN040 AROUND 18Z AS FRONTAL RAIN REACHES THE AREA.
CIGS WILL LOWER TO BKN-OVC015-025 BY 21Z JUST AHEAD OF THE FRONT. S
WINDS WILL BE IN THE 5-12 KT RANGE MOST OF THE DAY. FLOW ALOFT
FL050-FL100 WILL REMAIN STRONG SW...50-70 KT THROUGH 00Z. KAM
&&
.MARINE...THE STRONG COLD FRONT APPROACHING THE WA COAST THIS
MORNING WILL REACH THE COAST AROUND NOON...THEN REACH THE CASCADES
LATE THIS AFTERNOON. GALES ARE OCCURRING ALONG THE COAST...ENTRANCES
TO THE STRAIT...ADMIRALTY INLET...WITH THE N INLAND WATERS A STEP
BEHIND. LATEST OBS JUST BEFORE 3 AM HAD MOST SITES INCREASING A
LITTLE. WILL GO WITH THE 00Z RUNS AND DROP THE WINDS TO SCA LEVELS
IMMEDIATELY BEHIND THE FRONT...WHICH WILL BE AROUND NOON FOR THE
COAST/W ENTRANCE AND 4 PM FOR THE INLAND AREAS.
SCA ARE UP FOR THE CENTRAL STRAIT AND PUGET SOUND...BUT ONLY THE N
PART OF PUGET SOUND WILL SEE SCA WINDS AHEAD OF THE FRONT. SCA S-SW
WINDS SHOULD KICK IN OVER PUGET SOUND BEHIND THE FRONT TONIGHT. FOR
THE STRAIT THE MODELS HAVE BEEN SHOWING LESS WESTERLY GRADIENT
TONIGHT SO WILL INDICATE A LOW END SCA LATE TONIGHT.
THIS SYSTEM WILL GENERATE A LARGE WESTERLY SWELL 20-23 FT THAT
SHOULD BEGIN REACHING THE COAST THURSDAY AFTERNOON AND CONTINUE
THROUGH THURSDAY NIGHT. WITH A PERIOD AROUND 15-16 SECONDS THE SWELL
ENERGY WILL BE HIGHER SO A HIGH SURF ADVISORY FOR THAT PERIOD LOOKS
PRETTY GOOD. KAM
&&
.SEW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WA...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT THROUGH 4 PM PST WEDNESDAY FOR THE
CENTRAL AND NORTH WASHINGTON COAST AND UNTIL 6 PM FOR THE
NORTH INTERIOR.
FLOOD WATCH IN EFFECT FOR MASON COUNTY UNTIL 4 PM PST THURSDAY.
PZ...GALE WARNING ALL WATERS EXCEPT CENTRAL STRAIT AND PUGET
SOUND.
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY CENTRAL STRAIT AND PUGET SOUND.
SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR ROUGH GRAYS HARBOR BAR.
YOU CAN SEE AN ILLUSTRATED VERSION OF THE FORECAST DISCUSSION AT
WWW.WEATHER.GOV/SEATTLE/GAFD/LATEST_WEBAFD.HTML
WWW.WEATHER.GOV/SEATTLE2 high wind. Local standard time, as filed.
A cooperative observer near Bellingham recorded 40 mph sustained wind.
The Hoquiam ASOS recorded 40 mph sustained wind.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Washington in 2012Every state in 2012This day in weather historyWarnings in Washington, January 2012
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: 361416, 361417.