West Seattle, Washington
21 Friday
It was such a spectacular sunset, even wires couldn’t ruin it! The photo of tonight’s sunset, looking toward Alki Point Lighthouse, is from Steven Rice. Forecast for the week ahead suggests we won’t see much of the sunny weather that graced this weekend – with a near-record high today (63, just one degree below the record-for-this-date 64) – maybe some sun on Tuesday, otherwise rain. (Which is needed, a we’re still 6+ inches below normal for the calendar year.)
4:07 PM: For the second consecutive weekend, the National Weather Service has our area under a Wind Advisory alert. A Flood Watch was already in place for the entire county; now it looks like Seattle is in for strong wind, too. From the alert:
South winds 10 to 20 mph, with gusts up to 45 mph, expected.
The alert is currently scheduled to be in effect 9 am to 5 pm Saturday, but the time frame can change as meteorologists get a closer look, so get going with your charging and anything else you need to do to be ready.
10:20 PM: The NWS has shifted the advisory’s window earlier, to 5 am to 2 pm. The sustained winds are now expected to be 15 to 25 mph, with gusts still possible to 45 mph.
EARLY SATURDAY: Another revision – now 5 am to 1 pm.
Seattle Parks crews still have a lot of cleanup to do after the weekend windstorm. Our photo above shows Lowman Beach Park‘s biggest trees, which we checked out on Monday after a commenter mentioned those trees had lost limbs in the storm. It appeared – at least when we went by – that the northernmost tree had taken the brunt of that. Afterward we asked Parks for any stats on how many damaged or downed trees they were dealing with; spokesperson Rachel Schulkin told us today, “We have over 50 work orders related to downed trees or branches in parks citywide.” If you see tree trouble or any other Parks problem that you think might not yet have been reported, the department’s maintenance hotline is 206-684-7250.
3:39 PM: It’s hard to fully appreciate the precarious dangling status of that branch on a wire/cable over the center of the Admiral Way hill without driving/riding under it, as we did (photo taken by passenger) this afternoon. We mentioned it in our as-it-happened windstorm coverage overnight, and it’s one of multiple trouble spots lingering today, with cleanup yet to come. Not seen in our photo, the cones and signage beneath it. If you know of other trees still blocking roads, aerially or otherwise, please let us know if you can so we can check on their status before the am commute – thank you!
5:52 PM: Two readers sent photos of the tree above, in the 9700 block of 42nd SW in Arbor Heights. … Below, not a major traffic hazard, but a look at another downed tree we mentioned last night:
The tree on 21st that fell last night was in the driveway at Croft Place. Damaged multiple cars. You can see one under it if you zoom in on the third photo.
7:07 PM: Sent by Megan – trees still down in the 4000 block of 18th SW:
There are still 2 fallen trees blocking 18th Ave SW since 9:30 pm last night. This is a one-lane road and the only access. Every house after the trees, like mine, cannot leave. We called 911 last night because the trees also took down power lines. I called again a few hours ago and were told our case was called in but no idea when help will come.
ADDED: Sent Sunday night by Nathan:
Just wanted to warn parents and kids heading to Gatewood Elementary in the morning that there is a tree down and leaning on a power line on the West side of 44th Ave SW, near Myrtle – across from the school. We’ve alerted SCL but they have yet to respond.
7:35 PM: Thanks to Sarah for first word of the first significant outage in West Seattle since the Wind Advisory kicked in this afternoon: A tree is down on a line at 45th SW and SW Hemlock [map], a couple blocks east of Lincoln Park, and 117 homes are out of power.
Police are blocking off streets in the area, which is along a set of “switchbacks” used as a cut-through from California SW to Fauntleroy Way SW.
7:48 PM: Not West Seattle, but we just got a tip and a question about this: Just south of White Center, the Ambaum Boulevard curves are blocked by a fallen tree, so if you have to head south, find an alternate route (like 1st Avenue S.).
8:54 PM: Sarah sent the pic of a City Light truck in the vicinity. This remains the only outage of note in West Seattle, and throughout its service area, City Light only has a bit more than 1,000 customers are out, although the wind is starting to sound more fierce outside.
9:07 PM: And in fact, police were just dispatched for a reported tree into a house in the 8300 block of 46th SW.
9:28 PM: Just got another texted report, a tree down at 26th SW and SW Juneau in North Delridge. (Police report no injuries or damage, just blocking Juneau at 25th.) No other outages mapped yet, though a texter at 28th SW and SW Thistle reports losing power, and the wind continues to roar where we are (on a hill over Lincoln Park, southwest exposure).
9:40 PM: Added reader photo of 25/26/Juneau tree above. Not far from there, SFD is now responding to someone stuck in their car after a possibly live wire came down on it. … In Admiral, another “wire down” call at Fairmount and Belvidere, “sparking quite a lot” per dispatcher. … Tree down on High Point Drive per dispatch; brief outage near 35th/Avalon per texter … And another dispatch for a tree down in a front yard somewhere on 42nd SW … SFD says the person stuck in their car is out safely but a tree/wire is pulling down a pole so they’ll be blocking off 26th SW and SW Findlay vicinity.
9:57 PM: Even more trees/limbs down – dispatch just ticked off several, including 30th SW and SW Kenyon, California SW and SW Alaska, 4800 block SW Spokane, California Avenue and California Way … Texter says a tree’s down on SW Orchard near Home Depot, “cops on scene clearing,” and that the nearby signal on Delridge is out. … North end of Fairmount now has a 22-home outage … Texter says 26th SW and SW Roxbury signal is flashing red all ways … 4000 block of 18th SW, tree down, per dispatch … Tree into wires in 4700 block of 47th SW …
10:14 PM: SCL map now shows 145 out in Westwood/Sunrise Heights (above) and 9 out on Beach Drive.
10:30 PM: Tree down in 6700 block of 21st SW is reported to have hit at least two cars, per SPD.
10:46 PM: More trees down, per dispatcher – Admiral Way and SW Spokane; 2700 block Alki Avenue.
11:17 PM: The wind has calmed considerably, at least here in Upper Fauntleroy, and no new “tree down” reports in the past half-hour plus.
The Beach Drive power outage, meantime, now maps at 80 homes (screengrab added above). City Light is up to 34,000+ customers out around its service area, so repairs might take a while.
11:35 PM: Dispatcher reports trees down at California SW and SW Raymond north of Morgan Junction, and California Way and Harbor SW.
12:17 AM: According to police on the scene, the California/Raymond tree is blocking the southbound side of California. (Photo added above, sent by Adam.)
12:36 AM: Wire hanging low over Admiral Way on approach to eastbound West Seattle Bridge – that’s how dispatch described it, and while typing this, we got a text from Dan, who called it in and says it’s a tree branch hung up on the wire about a quarter of the way down the hill; another wire reported down outside a home at Marine View Drive and SW 102nd.
1:36 AM: Lots of cleanup ahead once this calms down. Here’s a texted photo from 48th SW and SW Holly:
2:32 AM: Another tree-down dispatch, this time for 20th/Holden. Meantime, checking SCL’s map, none of the local outages appear to have been resolved yet.
9:38 AM SUNDAY: According to the SCL map, the 117-customer outage near Lincoln Park is resolved but the 145-customer outage in Westwood/Sunrise Heights is not, nor is the 22-customer outage near the north end of Fairmount.
The National Weather Service has our area under a Wind Advisory alert starting at 1 pm today, continuing through 5 am Sunday. They’re expecting “southeast to southwest winds 15 to 30 mph, with gusts 35 to 45 mph expected at times.” We’ll be tracking any resulting trouble as always – if you have anything to report, once you’ve notified authorities, we’re at 206-293-6302, text or voice.
Two sights sent by readers a short time ago:
SUBMARINE: A texter sent that photo of a submarine as it passed Alki Point, headed toward Bremerton.
RAINBOW: While the Mariners are playing right now at Toronto, their stadium back here at home is receiving a rainbow. Thanks to Kelly Malloy for the photo! This follows an unexpectedly sunny afternoon, but more rain is likely on the way.
Thanks to Keri for the photos! Today’s north wind brought a classic scene on the Alki promenade – dramatic waves hitting the seawall.
A similar north wind is in the forecast for tomorrow too. Meantime, the wind is a challenge on the open Sound just past Alki – the Vashon Island Water Taxi has canceled trips for the rest of today because of the wind. (The West Seattle Water Taxi is still running – it sails in more-protected waters.)
Thanks to James Bratsanos for the view of the snow-dusted Olympic Mountains peaks seen from Alki after the weekend storm clouds lifted and departed. It’s not snowing low enough for skiing (the Stevens Pass cameras verify that) yet, but it gives us a reason to remind you that this year’s West Seattle Ski Swap is less than two weeks away. Mountain to Sound Outfitters (3602 SW Alaska; WSB sponsor) presents the Ski Swap across the street at the West Seattle VFW Hall (3601 SW Alaska), and this year’s swap starts with seller dropoffs on Friday, October 24, 2-5:30 pm (snowboards and other snowsports gear, not just skis), then two days of shopping, 10 am-5 pm Saturday and 10 am-4 pm Sunday, October 25-26. If you’re interested in selling, go here to register before pre-swap Thursday (October 23).
(Added: Photos by Mark Dale)
Yes, that was thunder – and a lot of it – rolling through the area these past few minutes. The National Weather Service says thunderstorms are possible for much of the afternoon.
Thanks for the photos! Between the sunbreaks and showers, that rainbow showed up. Katie S. sent the photo above and says, “Watched this beautiful rainbow today at Lincoln Park. It lasted a long time.” The photo below is from Gene Pavola, a bit further north:
The National Weather Service forecast says we might get a thunderstorm this afternoon. (The NWS says it’s working through the shutdown, aside from a few things.)
ADDED: Thanks to everyone who added pics in comments. Also, Kathleen emailed this one from Highland Park:
Again tonight, the setting sun was framed by a layer of wildfire smoke over the Olympics – this time, a band of smoke, rather than the billowing clouds we saw last night. The photo above is from Michael Burke; the one below, from Carol Ann Joyce:
Good news for the smoke and fire – rain is expected this weekend. (The sun is due back in time for a potential appearance at Alice Enevoldsen’s fall-equinox sunset watch Monday night.)
Thanks for the views of tonight’s sunset, extra-dramatic with billowing clouds. We’ll admit we don’t know whether they’re clouds of smoke or just clouds, but it was quite a view either way. The photo above is from James Bratsanos; below, a wider view from Wyatt:
And this one’s from Chris Frankovich:
Today’s high at Sea-Tac tied a record for this date, 91; tomorrow, we’re supposed to be back in the 70s.
ADDED: Gretchen Flickinger sent this view of the “enhanced” Olympics:
6:03 AM: Good morning! It’s Tuesday, September 16, 2025 – fall officially arrives in six days.
WEATHER + SUNRISE/SUNSET TIMES
Summery forecast today – sunshine and a high in the low 80s, with some smoke possibly blowing in tonight. Today’s sunrise will be at 6:48 am; sunset will be at 7:18 pm.
(Monday sunset, photographed by Chris Frankovich)
ROAD WORK
–59th SW in Alki is closed for a month by the school-construction zone (thanks to the reader who confirmed the closure happened as announced).
-“Natural drainage” construction toward the east end of Sylvan Way is scheduled to resume, but it hadn’t started as of EOD Monday.
TRANSIT TODAY
Metro buses – On regular schedule and routes today.
Washington State Ferries – WSF has three-boat service on the Triangle Route, with M/V Kittitas, M/V Issaquah, and M/V Sealth. Vessel Watch will show you which boat is where.
Water Taxi – Regular West Seattle service; summer/early fall schedule, with later runs on Friday and Saturday nights.
SPOTLIGHT TRAFFIC CAMERAS
High Bridge – Here’s the main camera, followed by the Fauntleroy-end camera:
Low Bridge – Here’s the view looking west. Also note, opening info is again available via X (ex-Twitter):
1st Avenue South Bridge:
Delridge cameras: In addition to the one below (Delridge/Genesee), cameras are also at Delridge/Juneau, Delridge/Henderson, Delridge/Oregon, and video-only (so you have to go to the map), Delridge/Holden and Delridge/Thistle.
MORE TRAFFIC CAMS: All functioning traffic cams citywide are here (including links to live video for most); for a quick scan of West Seattle and vicinity-relevant cameras, see this WSB page.
See a problem on the bridges/streets/paths/water? Please text or call our hotline (when you can do it safely, and after you’ve reported to authorities if they’re not already on scene) – 206-293-6302. Thank you!
After a mostly gray day – at least where we were – the sun made a late appearance, as shown in Brooke Gosztola‘s photo above and Bob Burns‘s photo below:
Tonight you might see another bright sight – flashes of lightning. Thunderstorms are mentioned in tonight’s National Weather Service forecast as a possibility, and we saw a flash far to the south about half an hour ago; radar also shows that type of activity in the South Sound and potentially heading this way.
10:11 PM: Thanks to Dave Taylor for the photo of tonight’s smoke-orange moon over Nino Cantu Southwest Athletic Complex, where the Chief Sealth IHS Seahawks won their season opener over Hockinson, 33-6. (We had a reporter and photographer there and will have their story later!) The game started early because of the air quality, or lack of it, and we also learned West Seattle HS‘s scheduled season opener tomorrow in Yakima is off entirely because of the smoke. Meantime, the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency has issued an Air Quality Alert for our area, through at least noon tomorrow. If you check the live map linked from the agency’s website, you’ll see areas of northeast Seattle, and the Eastside, are worse off. Fires in the Cascades are getting the blame as much as the big one in the Olympics. The alert says, “Everyone, especially sensitive groups, should limit time spent spent outdoors, avoid strenuous activities outdoors, and choose light indoor activities.”
ADDED 11:08 AM SATURDAY: Good news for air quality – it’s raining.
Right about the time Javier Fosado sent that photo of a ferry sailing through the fog, a different reader texted a question about the foghorn(s) they had been hearing all morning, wondering if foghorns are all from vessels, as they assumed the days of fixed, shoreside foghorns were all gone. We felt fairly certain that the Fauntleroy WSF terminal, for one, has a fixed foghorn; we’ve lived uphill from it for 30+ years. But we checked our assumption with WSF spokesperson Dana Warr, who replied:
There are fog signals at all South Sound terminals, to include Fauntleroy. It is also one of the closest to residential areas. The captains can request to have this navigation aid turned on/off to aid in the vessels’ safe navigation.
Thanks to the reader – who asked to be anonymous – who just sent that photo of tonight’s red moon. We noticed it while out and about a little while ago, high in the southeast sky, a followup to the deep-pink setting sun. Wildfire smoke will stay in the area a while, says the National Weather Service: “An upper level ridge will continue to keep conditions warm and dry through tomorrow. Hazy conditions will continue with the present pattern through at least this weekend due to smoke being put out by fires in the region.” And the smoke is low enough this time to affect air quality – mapping “moderate” according to the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency.
(Photo by Jan Pendergrass)
The setting sun was smoke-pink, but there was good news around sunset tonight – the National Weather Service‘s heat alert expired as expected, and normal temperatures are on the way back. Meantime, the sun had a followup act – a crescent moon:
(Photo by Dawn Roeder)
Labor Day is currently looking to be mostly sunny, with a high in the mid-70s.
(Clickable map is on National Weather Service site; basically, darker color = higher alert level)
A few hours into what was a Heat Advisory alert, the National Weather Service has raised it to an Extreme Heat Warning, in effect through early Tuesday morning. From the full alert:
* WHAT…Hot conditions with high temperatures ranging from the upper 80s to mid 90s and low temperatures in the mid 60s. This will pose a major risk of heat-related illness.
* WHERE…City of Seattle, Eastside, and Lowlands of Pierce and Southern King Counties.
* WHEN…Until 5 AM PDT Tuesday.
* IMPACTS…Heat-related illnesses increase significantly during extreme heat events.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors. Young children and pets should never be left unattended in vehicles under any circumstances.
Summer’s not over yet!
Tonight’s golden sunset – and some pink highlights – was captured by three photographers. Above, from David Hutchinson; below, from Doug Eglington:
And from Curry Gibson:
We note the sunset times (sunrise too) in the traffic roundup every weekday morning, and we’re a little sad to see that the last 8 pm sunset is a week from tomorrow.
Tonight’s sunset had some pink tint from wildfire smoke, as Anne Helene Cagney‘s photo shows, but nowhere near the color of last night. Clouds are moving in for the impending weather change, though the smoke put on something of a show earlier – this photo is from an unidentified texter:
(Both pics were taken at Lincoln Park.) The National Weather Service says a westerly flow is pushing smoke from the Olympic Peninsula as far east as Montana. But with rain expected by late tomorrow night, we shouldn’t have to deal with it for long.
(This morning’s moonset, photographed by Theresa Arbow-O’Connor)
Though the National Weather Service includes all of Seattle in a regional Heat Advisory alert for Sunday afternoon through Tuesday night, it’s looking like we won’t be all that sizzly. The alert says 90s are possible in parts of the region; the West Seattle-specific forecast, however, has highs in the low 80s all three days.
SUNDAY NIGHT NOTE: So much for the forecast … today’s official high was 88 degrees.
| 6 COMMENTS