King Tides Along Oregon/Washington Coast May Have Extra Power; Flood Advisory

Published 11/02/21 at 11:09 PM PDT
By Oregon Coast Beach Connection staff

(Cannon Beach, Oregon) – This weekend's first king tides of the season and the first installment of the King Tides Project looks as if the surges may have some extra power behind them on the Oregon coast and Washington coast. (Above: king tides at Nehalem Spit, courtesy Steve Moray / Oregon King Tides)

King tides happen on November 5 through 7 – Friday through Sunday.

The National Weather Service (NWS) in Portland said the day leading up to the king tides is going to have large swells offshore and a coastal flood advisory has been issued for the northern half of the Oregon coast and southern parts of Washington's coast that day. There are already high wind watches and warnings for various parts of the coastlines for Wednesday and Thursday.

Over the weekend, combined seas out there will be up around 15 to 17 feet at times, although slightly less on the south coast of Oregon. While period swells won't be high – which would result in higher beach run-up – there's still some sizable push behind those king tide surges.

Tyler Kranz with the NWS in Portland said dramatic things will be notable on Thursday.

“We are expecting minor coastal flooding due to tidal overflow around the time of high tide Thursday afternoon (November 4th),” Kranz told Oregon Coast Beach Connection. “This is when the perigean spring tides begin, or "king tides" as you like to call it. Combined seas during this time should be somewhere around 15 feet over the inner coastal waters.”

As Kranz spoke to Oregon Coast Beach Connection, he said the agency had just implemented the coastal flood advisory for tidal overflow, in effect from 10 a.m. Thursday to 4 p.m. on Thursday. The affected area is the northern half of the Oregon coast and the south Washington coast – from Florence through to Raymond, Washington.

See Oregon Coast Weather - Washington Coast Weather

“Minor flooding [possible] up to one foot above ground level in low lying areas near bays, sloughs, and the lower reaches of the coastal rivers,” Kranz said. “In the past, similar conditions resulted in minor flooding on Highway 101 near Seaside, Nehalem, and/or Tillamook. Water has also covered parts of Frazier Road, Miami Foley Road at milepost 1, and the intersection near Alderbrook and Possetti Road. There has also been minor flooding in the town of Rockaway Beach.”

“Keep in mind that a Coastal Flood Advisory is not as severe as a Coastal Flood Warning, however we still message the threat due to the aforementioned impacts that have been observed in the past.”

Over the weekend, there's even more during the king tides events. The NWS said another storm front arrives on Friday to the waters off these shorelines, and more systems arrive over the weekend into early next week. Between that and the already-high swells, chances are good for extra powerful surges along the beaches during the high tides of king tides.

It will be a time that requires especially extra caution.

Often, king tide events call for high surf warnings or advisories, so be prepared that to be issued. For Thursday's events, it will simply be blustery, Kranz said.

“We are not expecting conditions to meet our criteria for a High Surf Advisory,” he said. “That said, there will still be a rough surf on Thursday with hazardous conditions for beachgoers.”

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MORE PHOTOS BELOW

King tides at Westport, Washington, courtesy Washington King Tides / Shian Klassen

Rockaway Beach king tides, courtesy Lawrence Soto

King tides flooding in Nehalem

Courtesy Seaside Aquarium

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