The last in a series of strong low-pressure systems is scheduled to pass through the islands late Thursday afternoon and into the evening, the Town and County Department of Emergency Management reports. More rain and strong winds are in the forecast, similar to what the islands saw Wednesday night. The peak of the latest round of winds should occur roughly between 6 p.m. and midnight on Thursday.
Power lines and flag poles weren’t the only casualties of Wednesday’s high winds. Three massive fir trees were uprooted and the largest, as it fell, tore off a section of roof and wall of the garage of a waterfront home on San Juan Island’s Griffin Bay. The damage left the interior of the garage exposed to the weather.
Readers are invited to share their weather experiences: Neighbors helping neighbors … close calls … tips for getting through the storm … messages of thanks to someone who lent a helping hand. Send an e-mail — photos too — to rwalker@sanjuanjournal.com and we’ll post it and publish it.
The Friday Harbor Town Council will host a public forum tonight, 5:30 p.m., on the proposed farmers market site on Nichols Street. The public forum will be held in Mullis Community Senior Center. The San Juan Agricultural Guild proposes buying the former Friday Harbor Electric site on Nichols Street for a year-round farmers market, as well as other uses — what architect David Waldron calls “part small park and part town square.”
San Juan Island National Historical Park’s 90-foot flagpole at American Camp was snapped in half late Nov. 18 as winds gusting to 80 mph swept the San Juan Islands in northwest Washington, downing trees and cutting power to thousands of residents.
Perhaps the most important thing to keep in mind is the need for islanders to take care of one another. Check in on your neighbor’s house when things get cold, call that older couple who you see at the Post Office to see how they’re doing, and offer to split some fire wood for the fellow recovering from knee surgery. Islanders helping islanders is an old and essential part of life here.
OPALCO crews worked through the night to restore power to affected areas of the islands. As of 3:30 a.m., OPALCO expected power to be restored on the west side of San Juan Island by mid-morning today. Power was restored on Shaw and Crane islands with the exception of Neck Point. Power was restored on Orcas Island with the exception of the Urner Street area.
The 7:25 p.m. Anacortes to Lopez ferry was canceled tonight because of high winds and heavy seas, Washington State Ferries reported. This resulted in cancellation of the 8:35 p.m. departure from Orcas and the 9:15 p.m. arrival in Friday Harbor.
Sally Thomsen of Friday Harbor in the winner of the first periodic SanJuanJournal.com GeoBee. She was the third person to correctly identify the scene in this photograph as a portion of Spruce Street in Friday Harbor. As the winner, she is invited to stop by The Journal office on Monday morning for coffee and one — maybe two — of columnist Howard Schonberger’s fresh homemade chocolate chip cookies.
The National Weather Service in Seattle has issued a high-wind warning for portions of the Northwest interior and Admiralty Inlet. The warning is in effect from 1 p.m. today to 1 a.m. Thursday. Southerly winds will gradually increase through the day over the Northwest interior. In areas susceptible to strong southerly winds, expect sustained wind speeds of 25-40 mph and gusts to 60 mph this afternoon and evening. This would include Island and San Juan counties, the area around Admiralty Inlet and from Arlington up through Bellingham.
Tifni Twitchell Lynch is a storyteller. Never mind the first incarnation as an actor in her native Los Angeles. When Lynch tells a story, the listener is absorbed into her narrative landscape. At this moment, that landscape is one of endangered animals, golden apples and the elusive firebird. When these elements of nature and myth move from imagination to the context of San Juan Community Theatre, they form the brightly colored set of Lynch’s adaptation “The Merry Firebird.” Due to open on Nov. 20, the play is Lynch’s unique take on the pan-cultural stories concerning the mythic bird.
More than $400 in four hours. That’s what the San Juan Historical Society raised in its annual rummage sale, Nov. 7 in the museum’s resource center.
Parents attempt to prepare their kids for the future. We spend untold hours seeking the job our kids will love and at the same time be great at. Often no one seems to be helping, either our child or anyone else. About the time my first child was born, I became an active unpaid careers geek. Learning as a parent that I was not only the chief cook and bottle washer on a regular basis, but also the first teacher, medical intervention specialist and career specialist, gave me pause.
