All about the West Seattle neighborhood around Beach Drive
Sirens screamed down Beach Drive in the wee hours this morning to the call of a fire in a home at 4800 Beach Drive.
Scupper was on the scene and learned that the fire was put out by quick thinking and a garden house before the fire trucks arrived. You can still smell smoke in the air.
Thank goodness nobody was hurt. Back to bed!
Brace yourself for another stormy day. As I write this post (8:00 am) we have a wind advisory starting around noon and ending at 6:00 pm and a gale warning in effect until 4:00 pm with a high tide of 11.86 feet at 3:32 pm.
Here is the current Seattle City forecast:
…WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM NOON TODAY TO 6 PM PST THIS EVENING…
TODAY…WINDY. RAIN AT TIMES IN THE MORNING…THEN SHOWERS IN THE AFTERNOON. RAINFALL AMOUNTS A QUARTER TO A HALF INCH POSSIBLE. HIGHS IN THE LOWER 60S. SOUTH WIND 5 TO 15 MPH BECOMING SOUTHWEST 20 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 45 MPH IN THE AFTERNOON.
TONIGHT…BREEZY. MOSTLY CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF SHOWERS. LOWS IN THE LOWER TO MID 40S. SOUTHWEST WIND 15 TO 25 MPH BECOMING SOUTH TO 10 MPH AFTER MIDNIGHT.
GALE WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 PM PST THIS AFTERNOON
TODAY S WIND 15 TO 25 KT…BECOMING SW 25 TO 35 KT LATE IN THE MORNING. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT…BUILDING TO 4 TO 6 FT. RAIN IN THE MORNING…THEN SHOWERS IN THE AFTERNOON.
TONIGHT SW WIND 20 TO 30 KT…EASING TO 10 TO 20 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 3 TO 5 FT…S
A “barking dog report” means that we are very closely watching the sound and preparing to possibly flood. It may or may not happen (hopefully not!!). Consider us your neighbor’s barking dog who’s barking at potential trouble.
For those newer to Beach Drive Blog, one of the main reasons why we started this neighborhood site was to help keep the neighborhood informed of potential weather situations. I’m often surprised when neighbors are caught completely off guard or are not prepared for potential flooding. A “barking dog report” is kind of like your neighbors dog that’s barking – it could mean trouble or nothing at all. At the very least, it may serve as a reminder to be prepared for big storms.
So what’s triggering this “barking dog” is that we have wind gusts up to 60 mph in Seattle tonight. Eeee gahds! We have a HIGH WIND WARNING in effect starting at 8:00 pm tonight and ending at 2:00 am.
From the NWS: A HIGH WIND WARNING MEANS THAT A HAZARDOUS WIND EVENT IS IMMINENT OR OCCURRING.
Check out the current forecast (and be sure to check back as forecast do change).
…HIGH WIND WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 8 PM THIS EVENING TO 2 AM PDT SUNDAY…
TONIGHT…VERY WINDY. RAIN IN THE EVENING…THEN SHOWERS AFTER MIDNIGHT. RAINFALL AMOUNTS A QUARTER TO A HALF INCH POSSIBLE. LOWS IN THE MID 40S TO LOWER 50S. SOUTH WIND 25 TO 40 MPH BECOMING SOUTHWEST AFTER MIDNIGHT. GUSTS TO 60 MPH.
SUNDAY…BREEZY. SHOWERS LIKELY. RAINFALL AMOUNTS A TENTH TO A QUARTER OF AN INCH POSSIBLE. HIGHS IN THE 50S. SOUTHWEST WIND 15 TO 25 MPH.
SUNDAY NIGHT…MOSTLY CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF SHOWERS. LOWS IN THE MID 40S TO LOWER 50S. EAST WIND 10 TO 15 MPH BECOMING SOUTH AFTER MIDNIGHT.
GALE WARNING IN EFFECT THROUGH LATE TONIGHT
TONIGHT N WIND 10 TO 20 KT EARLY…BECOMING SW AND RISING TO 25 TO 35 KT IN THE EVENING. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT…BUILDING TO 4 TO 6 FT. RAIN IN THE EVENING…THEN SHOWERS AFTER MIDNIGHT.
SUN SW WIND 15 TO 25 KT. WIND WAVES 2 TO 4 FT. SHOWERS LIKELY.
SUN NIGHT SW WIND 10 TO 20 KT…BECOMING S 5 TO O 15 KT. WIND WAVES 1 TO 3 FT. A CHANCE OF SHOWERS.
And last… but not least… the tides
It looks like we may miss any serious flooding (green-water spilling over the bulkhead). Tonight’s high tide is 10.7 ft just before 6:00 pm. If the strong winds blow in at 8:00 pm, then tides should be around 8 feet (give or take)… however if you add 4 to 6 foot waves to the mix, it could be interesting. The good news is that the tides will be heading down until midnight.
The main reason for the “barking dog” is that if the wind warning lives up to forecast with 60 mph winds, we could see downed tree branches, loss of power, etc. If you have any umbrellas or other potential projectiles outside, you may want to make sure everything is secure.
Horns are sounding from a vehicle that appears to have drove off Beach Drive at Emma Shcmitz View Point right now. We have called 9-1-1 and the SPD and Harbor Patrol on their way. The vehicle’s lights are still blinking.
We will update this post when we have more information.
2:58 am UPDATE: Scupper was first on the scene, immediately followed by the SFD. SPD and Harbor Patrol. It appears that the vehicle left Beach Drive without a driver.
A concrete block landed on the passenger side of the vehicle that may have been placed on the gas pedal.
Currently the tide is on the way out.
There is no sign of passengers in or around the vehicle.
UPDATE 3:43 PM by Scupper:
This was the scene within a few minutes following the capsized skiff. The two boats (capsized boat on left & small working boat on right) were heading north together off of Beach Drive SW and appeared to be handling the following seas relatively well. The pictured sailboat was sailing in a SE direction just off the 4800 block then abruptly reversed course and ran north to the scene. I assume they may have been alerted by a Mayday call given that a Coast Guard cutter was closing in fast from the west. You can make out the 3 survivors sitting on the hull.
At the time of the incident, the flooding tide was flowing against the 30+ knot gusts around Alki Pt. This along with the shallower waters can get pretty hairy.
Scupper
Original post below.
The Coast Guard is currently rescuing a small aluminum boat that appears to have flipped over leaving the passengers to scramble on-top of the capsized hull of the boat for safety. It appears that the boat was traveling with another vessel. A second Coast Guard boat has arrived on the scene.
We watched two sailboats just moments ago wrestle the wind and waves. One sailboat looked to be having a terrible time, with ropes and portions of the sail into the sound. They finally dropped their sails and opted to motor away. The second sailboat seemed to navigate the sound a bit better, however, we noticed their sail had tears in it.
UPDATE 2:13 PM: The capsized boat has been left behind. There is a helicopter on the scene now too. We’re assuming the Coast Guard is trying to figure out how to safely remove the hull. Scupper speculates that the small boat must have been pooped by a following wave.
This is all unfolding south of Alki, about 400 – 500 yards off the shores of Beach Drive.
UPDATE 2:58 PM: Scupper is at the scene and has heard from a police officer that one person is missing from the boat.
The fire and rescue boat, Leschi, is now involved along with a police boat.
UPDATE 3:11 PM: A person has been retrieved from the Sound and is now in the helicopter.
UPDATE 3:22 PM: The hull is being hooked and it appears that it is attempting to be towed. We’re wondering if the second sailboat that turned back was possibly responding to a distress call?
The National Weather Service has just issued a High Wind Warning through 4:00 pm today which coincides with the high tide. The Wind Advisory is in effect through 8:00 pm tonight.
This for the NWS:
URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA 132 PM PDT SAT NOV 2 2013 WAZ508-509-030300- /O.UPG.KSEW.WI.Y.0013.000000T0000Z-131103T0300Z/ /O.NEW.KSEW.WI.Y.0014.131102T2300Z-131103T0300Z/ /O.EXB.KSEW.HW.W.0004.000000T0000Z-131102T2300Z/ SEATTLE/BREMERTON AREA-TACOMA AREA- 132 PM PDT SAT NOV 2 2013 ...HIGH WIND WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 PM PDT THIS AFTERNOON... ...WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM PDT THIS EVENING... THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SEATTLE HAS ISSUED A HIGH WIND WARNING FOR THE SEATTLE AND TACOMA AREAS...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 4 PM PDT THIS AFTERNOON. A WIND ADVISORY HAS ALSO BEEN ISSUED. THIS WIND ADVISORY IS IN EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM PDT THIS EVENING. * SOME AFFECTED LOCATIONS...SEATTLE...TACOMA... * TIMING...FROM 1 PM UNTIL 4 PM. * WIND...PEAK WIND WEST TO SOUTHWEST 25 TO 40 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 60 MPH...EASING TO SOUTHWEST 20 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 50 MPH AFTER 4 PM. * IMPACTS...WINDS THIS STRONG CAN SNAP SMALL TREE BRANCHES... TOPPLE SMALL OR SHALLOW ROOTED TREES...AND CAUSE LOCAL POWER OUTAGES. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A HIGH WIND WARNING MEANS THAT A HAZARDOUS WIND EVENT IS IMMINENT OR OCCURRING. A WIND ADVISORY IS ISSUED WHEN SUSTAINED WINDS OF 30 TO 39 MPH AND/OR GUSTS OF 45 TO 57 MPH ARE LIKELY.
This video is shot from three floors up about an hour ago. We’re still a couple hours from high tide.
I’m hearing that Vashon Island is out of power. We’re charging up our cell phones and lap taps. If we lose power, we’ll be posting on our Facebook Page and Twitter. Stay tuned!
Looks like tomorrow could be a nice day to hunker down. We have some high tides combined with a forecast for significant wind…at 4:10 pm we are at an 11.36 foot tide with serious potential wind and waves — please be prepared! Here’s some of the *current* forecast (please re-check forecast as they change often – weather related information I have posted under “Swell Links”).
The National Weather Service has issued a wind advisory through 8pm Saturday night along with a Gale Warning:
URGENT - WEATHER MESSAGE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA 915 PM PDT FRI NOV 1 2013 WAZ504-505-508-509-512-021215- /O.CON.KSEW.WI.Y.0013.131102T1500Z-131103T0300Z/ SOUTHWEST INTERIOR-EAST PUGET SOUND LOWLANDS- SEATTLE/BREMERTON AREA-TACOMA AREA-LOWER CHEHALIS VALLEY AREA- 915 PM PDT FRI NOV 1 2013 ...WIND ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 8 AM TO 8 PM PDT SATURDAY... * SOME AFFECTED LOCATIONS...SEATTLE...BREMERTON...TACOMA... OLYMPIA...CHEHALIS...ELMA. * TIMING...SATURDAY MORNING THROUGH EARLY SATURDAY EVENING. * WIND...SOUTH TO SOUTHWEST WIND 20 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 45 MPH. * IMPACTS...WINDS THIS STRONG CAN SNAP SMALL TREE BRANCHES... TOPPLE SMALL OR SHALLOW ROOTED TREES...AND CAUSE LOCAL POWER OUTAGES. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A WIND ADVISORY IS ISSUED WHEN SUSTAINED WINDS OF 30 TO 39 MPH AND/OR GUSTS OF 45 TO 57 MPH ARE LIKELY.
Seattle City Forecast:
…WIND ADVISORY IN EFFECT FROM 8 AM TO 8 PM PDT SATURDAY…
REST OF TONIGHT…RAIN LIKELY IN THE EVENING…THEN RAIN AFTER MIDNIGHT. LOWS NEAR 50. SOUTHWEST WIND 10 TO 15 MPH BECOMING SOUTH AFTER MIDNIGHT.
SATURDAY…WINDY. RAIN AT TIMES IN THE MORNING…THEN SHOWERS IN THE AFTERNOON. HIGHS IN THE LOWER 50S. SOUTH WIND 20 TO 30 MPH BECOMING SOUTHWEST 20 TO 35 MPH IN THE AFTERNOON. GUSTS TO 45 MPH.
SATURDAY NIGHT…WINDY. SHOWERS LIKELY. LOWS IN THE UPPER 30S TO MID 40S. SOUTHWEST WIND 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS TO 40 MPH BECOMING WEST 15 TO 25 MPH AFTER MIDNIGHT.
Puget Sound Marine Forecast:
PZZ135-021245- PUGET SOUND AND HOOD CANAL- 900 PM PDT FRI NOV 1 2013 GALE WARNING IN EFFECT THROUGH SATURDAY EVENING TONIGHT S WIND 10 KT...RISING TO 10 TO 20 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 1 FT OR LESS...BUILDING TO 1 TO 3 FT. RAIN. SAT S WIND 20 TO 30 KT...BECOMING SW 30 TO 40 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 3 TO 5 FT...BUILDING TO 5 TO 7 FT. RAIN IN THE MORNING...THEN SHOWERS IN THE AFTERNOON. SAT NIGHT SW WIND 25 TO 35 KT...EASING TO 15 TO 25 KT AFTER MIDNIGHT. WIND WAVES 4 TO 6 FT...SUBSIDING TO 2 TO 4 FT. SHOWERS LIKELY.
Tides Forecast:
Date Day Time Hgt
| 11/02 | Sat | 05:05 AM | 10.62 H |
| 11/02 | Sat | 10:34 AM | 5.07 L |
| 11/02 | Sat | 04:10 PM | 11.36 H |
| 11/02 | Sat | 10:58 PM | -1.04 L |
| 11/03 | Sun | 04:49 AM | 11.26 H |
| 11/03 | Sun | 10:18 AM | 5.53 L |
| 11/03 | Sun | 03:43 PM | 11.45 H |
| 11/03 | Sun | 10:36 PM | -1.91 L |
High tide of 10.08 takes place at 2:48 this afternoon… so we may be dodging the opportunity to flood. The wind warning is in effect starting 5:00 pm tonight at which point, tides will be around 8 feet. The next high tide of 8.28 will be at 1:54 am.
I was caught on the West Seattle Bridge late this afternoon in an amazing display of Mother Nature’s force. It was more rain, wind and water than I have ever witnessed on the bridge. I’m very glad to be home!
Well the first high tide took place a couple hours ago. We’re now bracing for the next high tide which is a 10.94 at 7:12 pm tonight.
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