Thirty-foot waves set to slam coast, threaten ships
This image from the National Weather service reads in part: "The leading edge of the giant swell will be reaching the Washington coast on Friday morning."
A gnarly low pressure system in the Gulf of Alaska is expected to send a train of giant waves slamming into the Washington coast Friday and Saturday—so big that they could pose a hazard even to the large commercial ships.
Off the coast, swells are expected to hit 30 feet Friday moring and continue strong well into Saturday, acccording to forecasts from the National Weather Service (NWS). With the space between waves forecast at 16 seconds, “this could pose a problem even for larger ocean-going vessels,” the NWS said.
Meteorologist Cliff Mass is tracking the Alaska storm on his popular weather blog. He says the intense low pressure system is expected to causes barometeric levels to plummet below 950 millibars and cause sustained winds of 55 knots out in the ocean, with gusts topping hurricane stength.
“Sometimes I look at the computer forecasts and just have to say WOW!,” Mass wrote on his blog today. “They don’t call these storms hurricanes because they aren’t tropical, but they pack a bigger punch. Huge size and big winds. And very, very dangerous to be near them on the water.”
The strong winds in the Gulf of Alaska will race across the ocean, building huge swells that will begin battering the Washington coast early Friday. The onslaught is expected to continue until Saturday evening.
“You won’t have to watch Deadliest Catch on TV or watch a DVD of the Perfect Storm to see big storm waves … Westport or Ocean Shores will do just fine,” Mass wrote.
