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Oregon Coast Travel and Entertainment News |
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Covering 180 miles of Oregon coast travel: Astoria, Seaside, Cannon Beach, Manzanita, Nehalem, Wheeler, Rockaway, Garibaldi, Tillamook, Oceanside, Pacific City, Lincoln City, Depoe Bay, Newport, Wadport, Yachats & Florence.
12/14/06
Secrets of the Season |
Enormous Oregon Storm Wreaks Havoc on Coast
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| Storm surges already making a splash on Wednesday - just south of Depoe Bay |
(Oregon Coast) – High winds, driving rain, massive storm surges, flood watches and closed roads are affecting the coast late Thursday night, and expected to do so until perhaps as late as Friday afternoon.
The storm has brought wind gusts as high as 75 mph to many areas along the coast, as well as flooding and downed trees that sealed off parts of Highway 101 as well as routes to the coast. The forecast calls for wind gusts up around 100 in some spots. All this has many residents and weather forecasters comparing this storm to the 1995 monster that ripped off the roof of a large restaurant in Newport and caused extensive damage all around the area.
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| Manzanita |
Winds are expected to peak in the evening, with gusts higher on the beaches and headlands.
Power has been going on and off all day on the coast, although most of Newport still had power as of midnight. Seaside was without power most of the day, as were chunks of the north coast and central coast. Some 18,000 residents were in blackout conditions in Clatsop County alone on Thursday night.
Thursday, felled trees had closed portions of Highway 26 and Highway 18 towards the coast, while Highway 18 just outside of Lincoln City and Highway 6 near Tillamook were closed due to flooding. All of those have been reopened, except Highway 6. However, delays from 20 minutes to two hours are still likely on 18 and 26, while some delays are still happening on 101 near Cannon Beach.
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In Manzanita, San Dune Motel owner Brian Hines said the power had been going on and off for most of the day, only staying on for about 10 minutes at a time. “The winds have been atrocious,” Hines said. “And the waves are huge.”
He added he’d been getting calls from folks in Mohler – along Highway 53, near Manzanita – who were looking for a place to stay because they had been asked to voluntarily leave after a flood watch was issued there.
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| Rockaway |
Newport resident Melissa Haines said she came home to an outage around 3:30 p.m., but power was restored within a few hours. Haines is a teacher at a school in Toledo, and it shut down early in the day due to increasing winds.
Both Haines and Newport Chamber spokesperson Lorna Davis had to drive Highway 20 between Toledo and Newport, and described conditions and insane. “It was like ‘The Wizard of Oz,’ with all this debris flying around that looked like the flying monkeys scene.”
Davis estimated the winds were around 80 mph in her area, but in fact the gusts were up to 75 or so at the time she talked to BeachConnection.net. “This definitely is comparable to the ’95 storm,” she said.
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| Large waves on Wednesday, just south of Depoe Bay |
Earlier in the evening, while being interviewed by another media organization in Portland, she heard a large thud on her house. Conditions were too wild to venture outside to check, but it appeared as if part of a tree had fallen on her house, she said.
Haines described some of what she saw with the storm.
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“Sometimes, the wind pushes really hard and the rain gets much harder, and it’s all so thick it looks like fog,” she said. “It’s really cool.”
Haines also saw some lightning flashes around 10 p.m.
In Lincoln City, the sign for a Thai restaurant was bent over by the fierce winds. In Seal Rock, the highway was closed for a while due to unknown problems. As of 7 p.m., parts of 101 were also shut down around Cloverdale, Cannon Beach and Gearhart, among other areas.
The Yaquina Bay bridge was shut down for a time because of the extreme winds, as officials worried about larger vehicles like trucks and school buses, which could be tipped over.
Flood watches are currently in effect for all rivers and bays along the Oregon coast.
Officials urge people to stay far away from the surf at this time, as swells are extremely dangerous and expected in the 30 to 40 foot range at times. This means no beach areas are safe, and even sea walls like those in Newport or Lincoln City may not protect the public from large, flying debris.
Erosion on beaches is likely too, say officials.
High tides on Thursday and Friday will likely mean some flooding by waterways fed by the sea.
The worst of the winds are expected to be over around 2 a.m., says the National Weather Service. Rain will likely be as much as five inches.
BeachConnection.net’s Portland office, in the Raleigh Hills area, was also without power until noon Friday. The entire neighborhood of SW 87th, part of the upper portion of Canyon Road, and many of the neighborhoods just below and above were dark all night and morning.
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Tradewinds Motel, Rockaway Beach If expansive ocean views, close proximity to golfing, fishing tours and quick access to seven miles of pristine beaches is your thing, then this quintessential beauty in Rockaway Beach is your ticket to vacation fun for families, couples or large groups. Some rooms are pet friendly. All rooms at the Tradewinds Motel are immaculate and have TV’s, VCR’s and in-room phones with data ports. The oceanfronts all have a queen bed, a double hide-a-bed, kitchen, cozy firelog fireplace and a private deck. Some oceanfront units come with all those amenities but the kitchens. Both types sleep up to four people. The non-oceanfront rooms are appointed with a queen bed, small fridge, and coffee maker – sizable for a two-person romantic getaway, yet still perfect for those on a budget. There is an elaborate oceanfront Jacuzzi suite that has two bedrooms, coming with a kitchen, double hide-a-bed, fireplace and private deck, sleeping as many as six. For those wanting bigger accommodations for family reunions or large gatherings such as weddings, some rooms can connect to create two-room and three-room suites. 523 N. Pacific St., Rockaway Beach. (503) 355-2112 - 1-800-824-0938. www.tradewinds-motel.com |
D Sands Condominium Motel, Lincoln City. Getting a free, fresh baked cookie upon check-in is just the beginning. Every room is beachfront, and it's all right up against Lincoln City's most famous stretch of beach, next to the D River. Each room, comes as a suite or mini-suite, and has a kitchen and balcony or patio. Some have gas fireplaces, while all have a DVD Players with movies available for renting (and movie rentals come with free popcorn). There's a heated indoor pool, a spa, and this fabulous beach is lit at night. Rooms sleep anywhere from two, four to six - including a deluxe fireplace suite. Gift certificates are available, and they offer special occasion packages as well. To make a reservation and see a virtual tour of the rooms, visit our website at www.dsandsmotel.com. 171 S.W. Highway 101. 800-527-3925. |
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