A November Storm Train for 2012

Water vapour satellite photo for 15:30 UTC (07:30 PST) 19 Nov 2012. A nice dry slot is evident behind the baroclinic wave that has been devloping overnight. This image also reveals a strong upper-level moisture plume associated with this storm. The system has a decent tropical tap. Image courtesy of the US National Weather Service.

08:05 PST: (All times in this narrative are PST, unless otherwise indicated.) A frontal wave is developing nicely, with the tip of a noticeable dry slot reaching 48ºN 129ºW currently, and the enhanced clouds of a nice comma-head sweeping over Vancouver Island. The 12:00 UTC HPC surface analysis only indicates a triple-point in the vicinity of where I would expect the low center t be (near the dry slot tip), with a widening of the isobars indicating a developing wave. No closed isobars as of yet. The parent 97.6 kPa stacked-low is just west of Haida Gwaii.

The Hydrometeorological Prediction Center (HPC) surface analysis overlain on enhanced satellite imagery for 12:00 UTC (04:00 PST) 19 Nov 2012. The most intense pressure gradient was situated over the Oregon coast at this time.

Environment Canada has a wind warning up for Vancouver Metro. SE winds are expected to increase rapidly around midday, reaching 70 to 90 km/h (40-50 kt) at times. Apparently, they are expecting the triple-point, or perhaps a fully-developed closed low, to pass across the southern Georgia Strait. However, the National Weather Service, Seattle, does not appear to be expecting winds of this magnitude in the Northwest Interior. The current forecast for Bellingham is for breezy conditions with wind speeds up to 40 km/h (20 kt). In my own experience, this setup does not appear to have a great probability of significant winds in Vancouver Metro, but things could change rapidly, so I plan to keep an eye on things as I am working away on my research.

Coastal areas, especially Oregon, are getting slammed pretty hard by the developing wave. Newport reported a S gust to 94 km/h (51 kt) at 23:55 and 05:35. Tillamook reported winds of S 65 km/h gusting 93 (S 35 kt G 50) at 00:35 and more recently a gust of S 87 km/h (47 kt) at 07:15. Astoria had a SSW gust of 94 km/h (51 kt) at 05:55. Apparently a spotter measured a 157 km/h (85 kt) wind gust at Yaquina Head around 00:30, according to the NWS, Portland.

Further north, Hoquiam at 08:25 reported winds NNE 20 km/h (11 kt), with the temperature falling from 11ºC (52ºF) at 06:04 to 9ºC (48ºF) at 08:25. The temp at Astoria, for contrast, is 13ºC (55ºF). The difference in wind direction between the two stations is classic for a compact low inside 130ºW that is situated north of Astoria's latitude and south or very close to Hoquiam's latitude. Heavy rain is falling at Hoquiam, with 10.7 mm (0.42") in the hour ending 07:53. Periodic heavy rain has also been falling in the north Willamette Valley, with Hillsboro reporting up to 5.8 mm (0.23") in the hour ending 02:53 and 37.1 mm (1.46") in the 24-h ending 03:53. Strong south winds have been buffeting the station, with gusts to 63 km/h (34 kt) at 05:53. Interestingly, winds at Portland have not been as strong, with gusts to 37 km/h (20 kt) at 20:53 last night being the highest so far. Hourly rain totals have been a little behind Hillsboro, too, with a 26.9 mm (1.06") 24-h total as of 03:53. Apparently, 50-100 mm (2-4") of rain are expected in the Willamette Valley today, with possible wind gusts in excess of 80 km/h (43 kt) as the wave moves ashore.

Currently at Vancouver International: Light rain showers with a temp of 8ºC (46ºF), dew point 7ºC (45ºF), wind E 20 km/h (11 kt) and pressure 99.75 kPa (29.46" Hg), up 0.5 hPa from a recent minimum during the last hourly observation. 08:43 PST. A wet, gloomy day outside of my window right now.

14:27 PST: The coast received a serious lashing right after I closed the previous entry. Here are some peak wind and peak gust reports from key airport stations:

Peak Wind 19 Nov 2012 Coastal Gale
Location	Time (PST)	Direction (º)	Speed (km/h) (kt)
Newport	10:15	190	78 (42)
Tillamook	12:35	180	72 (39)
Astoria	10:26	190	65 (35)
Hoquiam	19:28	170	67 (36)
Quillayute	03:53	190	20 (11)

Peak Gust 19 Nov 2012 Coastal Gale
Location	Time (PST)	Direction (º)	Speed (km/h) (kt)
Newport	12:55	200	107 (58)
Tillamook	12:35	180	102 (55)
Astoria	09:35	210	119 (64)
Hoquiam	11:04	170	98 (53)
Quillayute	06:53	VRB	35 (19)

Wind speeds have not been particularly strong at Quillayute. The temperature has not been as high as places south, either, indicating that this station is on the north side of the baroclinic band. The cooler air north of the band has sheltered the north Washington Coast from the warmer, more unstable and much windier air south of the boundary. The 21:00 UTC HPC surface analysis places a not-very-well-defined 99.2 kPa low pressure center just north of Hoquiam, and south of Quillayute. Hoquiam just fell under the gun—a few tens of kilometers placement of the boundary, and low, further south would have resulted in slower winds at the site. Winds shifted dramatically from NNE 17 km/h (9 kt) at 08:33 to variable and gusty from 08:40 to 08:53 then accelerating out of the SSE by 08:58. By 09:09, winds were S 37 km/h gusting 52 (20 kt G 28), and the temperature had risen 3ºC (6ºF) to 12ºC (54ºF) in 35 minutes. The warm sector had arrived, setting the stage for much faster winds over the next couple of hours.

The 21:00 UTC (13:00 PST) HPC surface analysis places a weakly-defined low right on the coast of Washington, with a strong southeast pressure slope (gradient) south of the depression.

Though this coastal storm proved quite strong, with wind gusts approaching hurricane force at some official stations, this event is far short of the Great Coastal Gale of 02-03 Dec 2007. However, these two storms do seem similar in many respects—they rhyme—including a strong tropical tap, a persistent baroclinic band with a train of waves enhancing local wind speeds, much rainfall, and generally higher wind speeds on the western side of the Willamette Valley (see below).

Here in Vancouver, winds are quite light, with a report of SE 11 km/h (6 kt) at 14:21. The pressure has become quite low, down to 99.35 kPa (29.34" Hg) at 14:00. At one point, the pressure fell 2.0 hPa in a single hour between 11:00 and 12:00. The pressure at Victoria has begun to rise from a low of 99.24 kPa (29.31" Hg) at 13:00. Winds have been ENE at 13 km/h (7 kt) for the past two observations, including the most recent one at 14:00. For comparison, low pressure at Quillayute occurred at 11:53 with a reading of 99.20 kPa (29.30" alt). At Vancouver, the thermometer at 14:00 indicated 8ºC (46ºF) and at Victoria 9ºC (48ºF). With offshore winds, cool temps and a barometer beginning to rise at least in Victoria, it seems that the threat of strong southeast winds in the region is diminishing. Seems like the triple-point and weakly-defined low, are likely to pass south of Greater Victoria and Metro Vancouver.

Moderate to heavy rain moved through both Victoria and Vancouver between 09:00 and 12:00, this embedded in a large field of light precipitation.

Generally speaking, SSE to SSW wind gusts in the Willamette Valley have been in the 50-65 km/h (25-35 kt) range. However, the west side of the valley seems to have been hit a bit more strongly than the east side, with McMinnville reporting a peak gust of 81 km/h (44 kt) at both 09:37, out of 190º, and 06:47, out of 170º. Hillsboro reported 78 km/h (42 kt) out of 160º at 12:48. Rainfall in some areas has been very heavy. Aurora, for example, reported 10.7 mm (0.42") in the hour ending 14:53.

On the coast, Hoquiam reported 13.7 mm (0.54") in the hour ending 08:53, followed by 13.0 mm (0.51") in the hour ending 10:53. Astoria had a whopping 16.0 mm (0.63") in the hour ending 19:55 yesterday. This has definitely been a juicy storm. 15:28 PST.

20:30 PST: The warm sector of our recent baroclinic wave just skirted south of Victoria and Vancouver. The warmer air did not quite reach White Rock, where the temperature just bumped up a degree or so with the arrival of light WSW to SW winds around 19:00. Abbotsford saw the temp climb from 7ºC (45ºF) to 9ºC (48ºF) between 18:00 and 19:00 with the arrival of a light SSW to SW breeze, before falling back to 8ºC (46ºF) by 20:00. The warm sector just barely caressed Bellingham, with the temp jumping from 8ºC (46ºF) at 14:53 to 12ºC (54ºF) by 15:20 (27 min), accompanied by a brief period of S winds at 19 km/h gusting 35 (9 kt G 20). The temp has since fallen to about 9.5ºC (49ºF) in the most recent observation, 19:53, accompanied by light and variable wind. Navy, Whidbey also only received a mild shot of warm-sector air, with the temp rising to approximately 11.5ºC (53ºF) at 14:56, accompanied by SSE winds of 31 km/h gusting 46 (17 kt G 25). The winds had faded to WSW 19 km/h (11 kt) by 15:21, with the temp down to 10ºC (50ºF). Gusts were stronger earlier in the storm's history, reaching 81 km/h (44 kt) in gusts out of 140º at 00:39.

Everett, however, received a more serious warm-sector dose. Between 12:53 and 13:32, winds leaped from S 15 km/h (8 kt) to S 56 km/h gusting 74 (26 kt G 40) and the temperature jumped from around 10.5ºC (51ºF) to 12ºC (54ºF). The pressure also began rising at a good clip, from a minimum of 99.42 kPa (29.36" alt) at 12:53 to an altimeter of 29.39" by 13:32, only to fall again, briefly, to 99.44 kPa (29.37" alt) by 13:53, then jumping to 99.60 kPa (29.43" alt at 14:53. This double-dip likely marks the passage of the warm front first, followed closely by the cold front.

The warm sector air had even stronger presence south of Everett, with temperatures above 10ºC (50ºF) persisting for many hours. In the blustery conditions that prevailed in the warm, unstable air, Sea-Tac reported a peak gust of 57 km/h (31 kt) out of 180º at 13:53. Boeing Field in Seattle reported a gust of 65 km/h (35 kt) out of 210º at 13:19 and West Point reported a burst to 80 km/h (43 kt) out of 190º at 14:00. Olympia reported 87 km/h (47 kt) out of 180º at 10:29; likely, some trees fell down in the vicinity.

During the heavy rain episode, ahead of the warm front, that seemed to reach many locations in the region, White Rock reported 5.1 mm (0.20") in the hour ending 12:00, Bellingham 4.8 mm (0.19") in the hour ending 11:53, Everett 8.4 mm (0.33") at 12:53, Bremerton 12.4 mm (0.49") at 06:55 and 11.9 mm (0.47") at 11:55, Sea-Tac 7.6 mm (0.30") at 13:53 and Olympia 6.1 mm (0.24") at 12:54.

My sister mentioned that her basement in Bremerton started to flood today, and that they had set up a sump pump. Those quite intense hourly totals point toward how the flood happened.

The HPC at 00:00 UTC placed the 99.2 kPa low over the southern interior of BC. Seems like the low center passed right over Vancouver, clearly occluded this far north, based on the warm-sector response described above. 21:07 PST.

Storm slowly exiting Cascadia. As of 04:30 UTC (20:30 PST), the frontal system had moved well inland over British Columbia and Washington, with the tail still lagging over Oregon. Image courtesy of the National Weather Service.

07:47 PST: (Vancouver, BC) The baroclinic band is still draped over Oregon, with periods of moderate to heavy rain afflicting parts of the Willamette Valley and surrounding uplands, and heavy snow in places at elevations above approximately 1,200 meters (4,000 ft). Cyclogenesis is taking place along the tail end of the band, off of Southwest Oregon. An enhanced dry slot clearly defines the area. It appears that this developing low will likely track northeast across the Beaver State, skirting south of the Willamette Valley. In the cooler, more unstable air behind the band, convective showers are expected, some of which could bring strong winds to the surface. Gusts of 80-100 km/h (40-50 kt) could occur on the coast and 55-70 km/h (30-40 kt) in the interior. Lightning strikes are being detected offshore, in a large mass of clouds rotating around a cold upper low centered about 46ºN 135ºW.

Up here, we have mostly clouds sky with a broken stratus deck. Vancouver International reported a temp of 7ºC (45ºF), dew point 5ºC (41ºF), wind E 13 km/h (7 kt) and pressure 100.28 kPa (29.61" Hg), falling 0.8 hPa/hr. 08:00 PST.

16:40 PST: A decent shower pattern has established itself throughout much of the region. Around 14:30, a dark-based cell moved through Vancouver, bringing with it moderate rain and gusty winds that shoved the trees in a strong sway for a few minutes. Vancouver International reported SSE 37 km/h gusting 50 (20 kt G 27) at 14:33 along with a light rain shower. Scanning many stations, I see that Hillsboro had a moderate rain shower that produced a gust to 70 km/h (38 kt) out of 250º at 12:47. Only 0.5 mm (0.02") of rain fell in that hour, however.

The cyclogenesis early this morning off of Southwest Oregon did not amount to much. Barometric indicators barely moved in response to the dry slot moving inland.

Some more peak gusts from yesterday's baroclinic wave, from a list compiled by Clinton Rockey of NWS, Portland and posted at 22:30 on 19 Nov 2012:

Peak Gust 19 Nov 2012 Coastal Gale
Location	Time (PST)		Speed (km/h) (kt)
High Elevation Sites
Naselle Ridge		09:45	183 (99)
Megler Tower		09:35	101 (88)
Mt Hebo		13:08	170 (92)
Well-Exposed Coastal Sites
Cape Disappointment		11:15	148 (80)
Columbia River Bar		10:00	156 (84)
Clatsop Spit		09:00	143 (77)
Garibaldi		08:55	135 (73)
Lincoln City		08:50	137 (74)
Yaquina Head		00:49	157 (85)
Interior Valleys
Newberg		12:10	96 (52)
Hillsboro Airport		12:53	78 (42)
Portland Airport		10:00	63 (34)
Forest Grove		00:30	59 (32)

This does not show everything, but is a good representative example. With any weather variable, context is important. This is why I tend to focus on airport and other weather stations that have well documented site characteristics and a long period of record, and I am reluctant to use isolated readings from unknown stations. And it is why the table is broken into sections based on exposure. Exposed ridgetops at relatively high elevation are often favored for very high readings. Another aspect of context is comparing readings at the same station between storms. What is the wind climatology of a given station like? Are 100 k/h (54 kt) gusts relatively common at the site? Even higher gusts? Though the readings at places like Naselle Ridge during the 19 Nov tempest are quite high, they are far short of the powerful gusts produced by the Great Coastal Gale of 2007. In 2007, Naselle experienced a 225 km/h gust (122 kt) and during the great Columbus Day Storm a gust of 258 km/h (139 kt) occurred. Coastal headlands and beach areas with a long over-water fetch are also prone to very high readings. During the 2007 event, gusts were higher than yesterday's storms at places like Clatsop Spit and Cape Disappointment. Even interior valley stations generally reported higher gusts in 2007 compared to this most recent 2012 event. The "Newburg" report is actually from outside of the community up on a relatively high ridge, a situation that, as noted above, favours higher speeds. It is important to keep context in mind when evaluating a weather event.

Yesterday's storm struck parts of Northern California fairly decently. Here are a few of the reports:

Peak Gust 19 Nov 2012 Coastal Gale California Stations
Location	Time (PST)	Direction (º)	Speed (km/h) (kt)
Crescent City	06:13	170	78 (42)
Arcata	07:14	250	89 (48)
Ukiah	09:56	140	33 (18)

The peak gust at Crescent City fell short of the 98 km/h (53 kt) maximum during the 2007 event. Even a gust of 89 km/h (48 kt) at 19:05 on 19 Nov, during an earlier wave, did not quite reach the magnitude of the Great Coastal Gale. Arcata, on the other hand, did receive a higher gust during the 2012 storm, or at least matched the speed—there is some uncertainty about the maximum speed in 2007 for this station. Winds at Ukiah were not much during yesterday's event. Nor were they particularly strong at Redding an Red Bluff (not shown). 17:57 PST.

Fall Transition 2012: Deep Cyclone Skirts Haida Gwaii

The fall transition of 2012 occurred during the period of 12-14 Oct 2012, just after the 50th anniversary of the Columbus Day Storm (AKA Typhoon Freda), with the arrival of two moist frontal systems, followed by a strong extratropical cyclone after the weekend closed:

15 Oct 2012: Monday

1540 PDT: A short-term forecast issued by the National Weather Service, Seattle, at 1533 indicates thunderstorms moving east into the Olympics, Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Chehalis Valley. They expect the thunderstorms to reach Seattle within an hour. Small hail, heavy rain and gusty winds may accompany these showers. Environment Canada indicates the possibility of thunderstorms here in Vancouver this evening, so it appears we are under the lightning gun as the vigorous cold front moves ashore. There is also a wind warning for Victoria, for strong SE winds shifting to W after frontal passage, with the possibility of gusts to 90 km/h, perhaps even up to 100 km/h. Here in Vancouver, SE winds are expected to reach 60 km/h at times, before shifting to west 50-70 km/h.

Based on the latest Water Vapor (WV) satellite loop, the low pressure center is just south of the southern tip of Haida Gwaii, with the leading front now coming ashore on Vancouver Island. The most enhanced cloud-tops, which have a granular, almost ropy structure, indicate the presence of numerous convective cells reaching down the coast from Vancouver Island to Southern Oregon.

Visible satellite photo of the developing extratropical cyclone, center just south of Haida Gwaii. Time 22:30 UTC on 15 Oct 2012. Image courtesy of the National Weather Service.

Quillayute reported a thunderstorm with heavy rain at 15:18, and some 5.3 mm (0.21") of precipitation fell between 1453 and 1537. Winds were not particularly strong during the thunderstorm, with gusts to 29 km/h (16 kt). Hoquiam has not reported a thunderstorm, but heavy rain occurred around 14:50, after which a wind shift occurred: from ESE 16 km/h (9 kt) at 14:53 to SSE 34 km/h (18 kt) by 15:01. Gusts climbed to SSE 53 km/h (29 kt) by 1539. A thunderstorm with light rain struck Astoria around 1509, followed by S gusts to 69 km/h (37 kt) by 1509.

This infrared image from the same time as the visible photo above reveals strongly enhanced cloud tops, stretching SE over Cascadia like giant fingers, associated with deep convection (about 10 km, or 35,000 feet) ahead of the extratropical cyclone's cold front. Most of the thunderstorm activity was confined to the coast, though heavy showers did strike some inland stations. For example, both Eugene and Salem reported heavy rain, with hourly totals around 5-6 mm (0.20-0.25"). Image courtesy of the National Weather Service.

We have a dark gray sky with light rain falling right now, with a patio temp of 13.8ºC, RH 83%, unsettled winds perhaps up to 15-20 km/h at times and a pressure of 29.63" (100.34 kPa), falling at a decent clip. Vancouver International began reporting light rain showers around 1345, with E winds of 16 km/h gusting 27 (9 kt G 15). The 1500 report indicated light rain showers with temp 13ºC (55ºF), dew point 11ºC (52ºF), wind ENE 11 km/h (6 kt) and pressure 100.63 kPa (29.72" Hg), falling 1.9 hPa/hr. Victoria at 1500 reported moderate rain and mist, with temp 12ºC (54ºF), dew point 11ºC (52ºF), wind NNE 10 km/h (5 kt) and pressure 100.55 kPa (29.69"), falling 1.9 hPa/hr.

The 2100 UTC HPC surface analysis indicated a 98.0 kPa central pressure for the extratropical cyclone, with a position almost due south of Haida Gwaii at latitude 51ºN. The weather situation is evolving rapidly. 1605 PDT.

1902 PDT: Not a whole lot of excitement happening here so far. Just a steady light rain outside, with somewhat unsettled winds. The patio temp is 13.2ºC. The most exciting thing, perhaps, is the pressure fall, which has been fairly fast at times.

Vancouver International reported a drop of 2.7 hPa to 100.13 kPa (29.57" Hg) in the hour ending 1700, followed by an additional 1.8 hPa in the next hour. East winds picked up to 24 km/h gusting 34 at 1800 (13 kt G 18). Moderate rain occurred at 1748, dropping back to light by 18:00. It appears that the threat of a thunderstorm is probably over, with the more enhanced cloud tops off to the east, based on the WV satellite loop.

The extratropical cyclone center has passed the southern end of Haida Gwaii and is now racing ENE toward the mainland. Buoy 46147, near Haida Gwaii's Khungit Island, reported a wind shift in the past few hours, from SE 58 km/h (31 kt) at 1500 Alaska Daylight Time to W 47 km/h gusting 87  (25 kt G 47) by 1600 and then WNW 67 km/h gusting 90 (36.5 kt G 49) by 1700, with a pressure jump from 97.15 kPa (lowest pressure; 28.69" Hg) to 97.65 kPa (28.84" Hg), or 5.0 hPa, in the hour ending 17:00. Out in the Hecate Strait, buoy 46185 reported SE winds of 76 km/h gusting 101 (41 kt G 55) at 1700 Pacific Daylight Time, followed by SE 72 km/h gusting 93 (39 kt G 50) by 1800. The pressure continued to show a falling trend, down 3.1 hPa/hr to 97.28 kPa (28.73" Hg), as of the most recent observation, 1800. Note the SE winds as well: The low center has not yet passed north of Buoy 46185.

Sandspit had winds shifting from NNE around 1737-1807 to N by 1815 and then NNW by 1832 finally to NW by 1900 as the low tracked south of the station. Wind speeds have generally been in the 40-50 km/h (22-27 kt) range, with gusts as high as 66 km/h (36 kt). A steady heavy rain fell during the entire wind shift, with the temp slowly falling from 11ºC (52ºF) to 9ºC (48ºF). 1928 PDT.

16 Oct 2012: Tuesday

0823 PDT: (Vancouver, BC) Buoy 46185 had a classic bent-back attack after my last entry yesterday. At 1900 PDT, wind became SSE 50 km/h gusting 67 (27 kt G 36.5), with the temperature climbing to 12ºC (54ºF) from 11ºC (52ºF). The pressure reached its minimum of 97.14 kPa (28.69" Hg), quite low. Then, by 2000, the wind had shifted to W, with a speed of 72 km/h gusting 96 (39 kt G 52). The temp dropped back to 11ºC (52ºF) and would fall further in the next hour to 10.5ºC (51ºF). More importantly, the pressure jumped 3.5 hPa to 98.17 kPa (28.79" Hg) in the hour ending 2000, to be followed by an even stronger climb of 6.8 hPa to 98.77 kPa (28.99" Hg) in the next hour. Winds tapered off after the initial surge. This is a classic pattern for a station that falls under the tip of a extratropical cyclone's bent-back occlusion. Sometimes a city like Victoria or Vancouver is on the receiving end of a strong wraparound band. For many stations, the strongest wind speeds on record have occurred in association with this feature. Here is the wind, gust and sea-level pressure plot for 46185:

Wind speed in knots (blue line), gust (red line) and sea-level pressure in inches (green line) for Buoy 46185. The signature of the 15-16 Oc 2012 extratropical cyclone is quite evident in the sharp wind and pressure response on the right-hand side of the chart. The first escalation in wind occurred out of the SE as the low center approached the station. The second surge, not quite as dramatic, arrived out of the W and is associated with the storm's strong bent-back front. Extremely fast pressure rises accompanied this feature, resulting in a V-shaped pressure trace that is reminiscent of a hurricane. Chart courtesy of the National Data Buoy Center.

1040 PDT: Looking locally, the storm did not quite meet forecast expectations. At Vancouver International, peak winds reached W 47 km/h gusting 56 (25 kt G 30) at 0700, with a maximum gust of 58 km/h (31 kt) reported at 0600. The westerly surge arrived around 0300, and slowly escalated. These wind speeds were not even close to the maximum 61 km/h gusting 74 (33 kt G 40) that occurred after a dry upper trough moved through overnight on 01-02 Oct 2012.

Victoria International reported maximum winds of W 34 km/h gusting 45 (18 kt G 24) at 03:00, nothing like the forecast 90 km/h (even 100 km/h in one warning). Even wind-favored Gonzales Heights only managed WSW 52 km/h gusting 69 (28 kt G 37) at 2300 with a peak gust of 76 km/h (41 kt) at midnight.

Abbotsford reported peak winds of SSW 34 km/h (18 kt) at 0500, with a maximum gust of 40 km/h (22 kt) at 0500 and 0700.

Bellingham reported SSE 39 km/h gusting 52 (21 kt G 28) at 2053, with a maximum gust to 58 km/h (36 kt) at 2019.

Nothing really spectacular happened rainfall-wise with this storm. Bellingham reported 5.6 mm (0.22") in the 24 hours ending 0453. Vancouver had 3.6 mm (0.14") yesterday, with Victoria reporting 10.1 mm (0.40") and Abbotsford a soaking 17.0 mm (0.67"). Quillayute had 25.9 mm (1.02") in the 24 hours ending 0453, a good soaker but still far from any record. Sea-Tac had 7.9 mm (0.31") in the same time period, and Portland 11.2 mm (0.44").

The 15-16 Oct 2012 extratropical cyclone, though it did not bring a big storm to the major population-centers of Cascadia, nevertheless made for an interesting opening to the 2012-13 storm season. 1104 PDT.