December 2018

By Mark Ufkes

There is no better way to wash away the complexities of 2018 and usher in the unlimited possibilities that 2019 holds for each of us than to run into Puget Sound, while holding hands with our family and friends and screaming like crazy.   

We go into the water at 10 am sharp!  Don’t be late.  

We gather at 9:45 am on January 1 in front of Dukes on Alki.  We spread out east and west along beautiful Alki Beach in a long line.  There will be 10-minute, 5-minute and 1-minute warnings, and at 10 seconds, together, we all begin counting down; 10-9-8-7 . . .

We then yell “Happy New Year”, hold hands with those next to us, and run into the water.   It is all over in less than a minute.   

Last year, well over 500 participated and a huge crowd cheered us on.  

Update Dec. 21 8:35am

While City Light crews managed to take care of the bulk of the outages from the windstorm that hit the area on Dec. 20, some pockets of outages persisted across the region with more than 1000 customers still out on Friday morning. The largest in our area was near 127th SW between 4th SW and Ambaum Blvd. SW with 124 still out. Restoration was expected before noon but a few were listed as not likely to be fixed until after 4pm.

Original Post Dec. 20

As expected a December windstorm swept into the region on Thursday and knocked out power. 4358 near Seola Beach were without electricity with an expected restoration time of 4pm. More than 29,000 were out as of noon.

You can check on the status of outage on the City Light System Status page 

http://www.seattle.gov/light/sysstat/Default.asp

The National Weather Service in Seattle has issued a High Wind Watch, which is in effect from Thursday morning through Thursday evening.

HIGH WIND WARNING NOW IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM THIS MORNING TO 7 PM PST THIS EVENING...

* WIND...South to southeast wind 25 to 40 mph with gusts up to 60 mph.

* SOME AFFECTED LOCATIONS...Seattle, Bellevue, Tacoma, and Bremerton.

* TIMING...Winds will increase rapidly Thursday morning with the strongest gusts expected for a few hours Thursday afternoon.

* IMPACTS...Snapped tree branches and downed trees along with some power outages.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A High Wind Warning means a hazardous high wind event is expected or occurring. Sustained wind speeds of at least 40 mph or gusts of 58 mph or more can lead to property damage.

Prevention Tips at Home:

• Try not to visibly display wrapped or received gifts through windows or doors

• Dispose of packaging, in which gifts or other purchases come in, by breaking down boxes first, turn them inside out so the exterior writing does not show, and don’t put them on the curb until collection day

Do you want to be the one who puts the best, blingy-est gifts under the Christmas Tree? Of course you do, so get yourself to the Beveridge Place Pub on Monday, December 24th!   Your gifts will be wrapped up in magnificent style and you'll be supporting Furry Faces Foundation at the same time.  

Always a great event for those of us that wait until Christmas Eve to wrap our gifts!

If you would like to give your time to help wrap, please email us at furryfaces@hotmail.com.

Wrap It Up! With Furry Faces Foundation!

Location: Beveridge Place Pub, 6413 California Ave SW

Date: Monday, December 24th

Time:  2 pm - 6 pm

By Paige Browning, KUOW

Immigrant business owners south of Seattle say they're being displaced — and now they're suing.