Seattle

The Unusual Mid-Spring Windstorm

of April 27, 1962 compiled by Wolf Read Introduction In late April 1962, a very intense 977 mb low moved near Tatoosh Island and then tracked inland across Southern Vancouver Island. Strong pressure gradients built across Washington and Oregon as the low dove inland. Winds escalated, reaching 45 to 60 mph in gusts across much of the interior, and 50 to 75 mph along the coast north of Coos Bay, with unofficial gusts exceeding 100 mph. In classic fashion, Tatoosh was raked by powerful easterlies as the low approached, and Port Angeles was hammered by an intense west flow that set up in the Strait of Juan de Fuca behind the cyclone as it moved into southern British Columbia. In Oregon, farm structures were torn apart, and trees fell wholesale, breaking power and telephone lines, smashing cars and homes [1]. One person was killed in Washington, electrocuted by a fallen power line. This kind of windstorm scenario has played out on numerous occasions during the late fall and winter months. More rarely, it'll happen within the month following the Vernal Equinox. To have it happen near the beginning of May--in this case, April 27th--is astounding. The winds from this storm were fairly strong, especially along Oregon's coast and across Western Washington, but they weren't this cyclone's distinguishing feature. It's the late-season occurrence, especially when the depth of the storm is considered. Other April events, such as the April 14, 1957 sou'wester, just weren't as intense central-pressure-wise. The April 27, 1962 cyclone is a winter storm that happened in the spring. The storm's late-season timing isn't the only reason to be interested in this event. This powerful low shares the same year as the great Columbus Day Storm. The tempest of October 12th is a perfect counterpoint to the April 27th cyclone--the Columbus Day Storm was a winter superstorm that happened in early autumn. Following the Columbus Day Storm was another late-season event, a powerful secondary spinup low that tracked across Northwest Oregon on March 27, 1963. It seems that a pattern of early and late season--transitional month--storms had set up during 1962 and 1963. It is tempting to speculate about this unique series of high-wind generating cyclones. What was going on to promote these seemingly out of season events? We may never know. But I have speculations. One is that 1962 was a phase-chage year for some heretofore unidentified long-term climate cycle. I have a number of resons for this thought, which I describe in more detail in the introduction for the October 2, 1967 windstorm page.