"Like Stems of Grass the Trees Fell Before the Wind" Great Coastal Gale Hwy-26 Near Seaside OR 07Dec2007

From the archives.

During 02-03 Dec 2007, a massive windstorm pummeled the Oregon and Washington coasts. Powerful winds lasted for more than a full day. At times, two-minute average wind speeds exceeded 100 km/h in places, with gusts ranging from 150 to 225 km/h. Winds of this magnitude had not been seen since the great Columbus Day Storm of 1962. Trees in the millions fell before such a powerful force, bringing to mind the blast zone of the 18 May 1980 eruption of Mt. St. Helens.

In the accompanying photo, a managed stand owned by Weyerhaeuser has been leveled by the gale. It almost appears like a deep flood had poured down the hillside, bulldozing the trees. The cause was indeed a flood--of air, not water. Before the storm, a harvest had been initiated near this site. The clearcut produced an open area near this stand, and left exposed a vulnerable edge of trees that had not acclimated to the wind. This stand is also even-aged, meaning that the trees are all approximately the same age. And the timber was managed to be similar is size/shape: a uniform stand. When the wind reached a high enough threshold to begin toppling the trees along the wind-exposed edge, the gale had reached enough strength to take down most of the boles. Under such stand conditions, relatively low wind speeds of 40-60 km/h (with higher gusts) can cause significant tree loss. The Great Coastal Gale produced winds far in excess of this. The forest did not have a chance.

For more information on the Great Coastal Gale, and other Pacific Northwest Windstorms, visit "The Storm King".

Taken in: United States / Oregon / Necanicum Junction (show map)

Taken on: December 7, 2007

Tags:

Great Coastal Gale

gale

severe weather

storm

windstorm

tempest

natural forces

disaster

catastrophe

Sitka spruce

Picea sitchensis

Genus Picea

Family Pinaceae

Order Pinales

Class Pinopsida

tree

conifer

evergreen

plant

flora

vegetation

wood

windthrow

windsnap

blowdown

stem break

broken

snapped

toppled

Kodak camera

Kodak Z7590

Z7590

Highway 26

Seaside

Oregon

USA « less

Sets appears in: • Forest Science • Tempests

Groups appears in: • landscapes

Camera: Kodak Z7590 Zoom, f/3.2, 1/60 sec, 23.1mm, ISO 100 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Kodak Z7590 Zoom
Aperture:	f/3.2
Exposure Time:	0.017 sec (1/60)
Focal Length:	23.1mm
ISO:	100
Exposure Bias:	-2/3 EV
Flash:	Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program:	Program AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	Uncalibrated
Software:	Adobe Photoshop CS Macintosh
Show full info

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