Prepare For 60 MPH Winds During Thursday Storm

SEATTLE, WA - A storm packing 60 MPH winds gusts and heavy rain will hit Puget Sound beginning Thursday morning. Meteorologists are warning residents to prepare for damage like downed trees and widespread power outages.

The National Weather Service issued a high wind watch on Wednesday morning - but the watch was upgraded later in the day, warning of higher wind gusts in the Puget Sound lowlands.

The highest winds are expected to start Thursday morning around 10 a.m. and last through 7 p.m. Southeast winds will range from 25 to 40 MPH, but we could get gusts of up to 60 MPH. That's the same strength we saw during last Friday's wind storm, which knocked out power to tens of thousands of people across the region.

The high wind watch covers all the Puget Sound interior, from Olympia up through the Kitsap Peninsula and north to Bellingham. The watch stretches east to the Cascade foothills.

Related: Port Orchard Tornado Was An EF2, Weather Service Says

"Next storm system continues to take shape over the eastern Pacific early this AM. It is expected to intensify over the next 24 hours before coming ashore on Vancouver Island late Thurs AM. For Western WA, we can expect more rain, potential high winds, and large ocean surf," the Seattle National Weather Service office wrote on Twitter Wednesday.

Also, the NWS added, locals should secure Christmas decorations before the storm hits.

There's some hope on the way, however. The forecast for Friday is partly sunny and dry with highs in the mid-40s.

Image courtesy NWS