MAINE, Maine — We can't seem to catch a break this month. October has offered a storm a week and those storms have been quite nasty.
This one will follow suit with periods of heavy rain and the potential for damaging wind gusts beginning Thursday morning and lasting into Friday afternoon.
The key to this storm is a warm front. The front is expected to pass through tomorrow morning, warm-sectoring most of the State shooting temps into the lower 60s.
The warm temps sound really nice, but they are actually a detriment. Warm surface air helps mix the lower layer of the atmosphere, drawing down stronger winds from aloft.
The wind will begin picking up out of the south tomorrow morning and by the time kids are hitting the streets, there may be a few gusts to 40 mph. The trick-or-treat hours are looking spooky!
The low-level jet will be screaming overhead from midnight to 8 AM Friday. Warm air and a convective squall line may optimize potential and gusts to 50 will be possible.
The front will pass by 9 AM and the rain will abruptly stop. The gusts, however, will not. The wind will back to the west and downslope out of the mountains. The momentum generated from that slide from higher elevations to lower ones will keep peak gusts over 40 mph going into the afternoon.
I'm nervous about power outages. We have a lot working against us again. Leaves are still on some trees, the ground is saturated from all the recent rain and the wind direction is different than the other storms this month. Trees and branches will be vulnerable and some outages are likely. Let's hope it's not a lot.
-Todd