Hurricane  December 12, 1995

Oregon State Climate Service web site.

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Storm summary was written by George Taylor, Oregon State Climatologist.

On December 11, 1995, a large low pressure storm approached the southern Oregon-northern California coast and began to slow and deepen. Its central pressure at sea level began to drop precipitously, and the National Weather Service began to issue high wind warnings for the coast and the inland valleys. Later that day, very high winds struck California, knocking down trees as far south as the Bay Area.

On the morning of the 12th, the area of highest winds reached the Oregon coast as the low, still offshore, moved northward. Late that morning, Sea Lion Caves near Florence topped out at 119 mph before problems developed with the anemometer (no wonder!). In Newport, a gust of 107 mph occurred downtown, while Astoria and Cape Blanco also had gusts of over 100 mph. Astoria's air pressure dropped as low as 28.53 inches, an all-time record (and comparable to the central pressure of a Category 2 hurricane!). Gusts in the Willamette Valley exceeded 60 mph. Hundreds of thousands were without power, there was widespread damage to homes, buildings, and boats, and four citizens lost their lives.