FERNDALE, Wash. — Durations of chronically breezy wind conditions are not something weather historians typically track let alone report but if you spent much time outdoors over the past month you may have noticed it has been unusually breezy in the Ferndale area. This came to an abrupt end this morning as we woke to calm, light and variable winds.
Comparing graphs of the historical data for June 2018 and the same period this year reveals that, in fact, it has been chronically breezy for weeks and that is a bit unusual.
June 2018 data
June 2019 data
During June of 2018, sustained wind speeds were frequently below 5mph but so far during June 2019 that has been a rare occurrence and even more so over the past 2 weeks. This trend began back in late May.
Grass pollens are often at their highest this time of year and wind, even breezes, make it worse for those with pollen allergies.
When asked what was responsible for causing this weather anomaly, National Weather Service meteorologist Dustin Guy told My Ferndale News,
Over the past couple weeks, onshore flow has been relatively persistent through the Strait of Juan de Fuca. We’re now entering a bit of a pattern change in the week ahead. A broad trough of low pressure over the coastal waters in the last 24 hours has kept the onshore flow weaker than what we saw in the past week. Since the “outflow” from the eastern strait is weaker, it often corresponds to lighter winds over the northern inland waters (as well as Whatcom County).