Strongest Windstorm Of Winter Will Hit Puget Sound Saturday

SEATTLE, WA - Meteorologists are saying that the storm expected to hit Puget Sound beginning at 10 p.m. Saturday will likely be the strongest wind event this winter. The storm will bring 50 MPH gusts and higher lasting until around 7 a.m. Sunday.

"This is serious, so I would be prepared," University of Washington meteorologist Cliff Mass wrote on his blog Saturday.

Eastern King and Pierce counties will be under a high wind warning beginning Saturday night and lasting until 10 a.m. Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. The rest of Puget Sound will be under a wind advisory.

The highest winds will hit early Sunday morning. That means thousands around Puget Sound could wake up Sunday morning to downed tree limbs and power outages.

Officials are warning Puget Sound residents to charge cell phones and other electronic devices - and make sure you have batteries and other supplies ready.

The last strong wind storm hit on Dec. 20. Winds were recorded as high as 59 MPH along the SR 520 bridge. More than 150,000 lost power in Snohomish, Pierce, and King counties. But the storm coming Saturday night could be stronger.

"Perhaps not the equal of the truly historic storms, but quite possibly the big wind event of the winter," Mass predicted. "The only thing that will help mitigate the power outages is the pruning by previous wind events. But I expect that tens of thousands will lose power over the region."

Patch file photo