Maine Could See Severe Coastal Flooding From Saturday’s Storm

I think we can all agree that this winter has been anything but normal.  Typically, Maine winters are either very mild or very snowy.  Either we get warm weather and almost no precipitation, or it is cold and we get hammered with snowstorms.

So far, the winter of 2023/2024 does not fit into either of those categories.  This winter's weather has been a real roller-coaster.

Last fall, most of the meteorologists with ties to New England did warn us that the return of El Nino could end up causing some strange weather this winter.  December’s “Grinch” storm, Sunday's snowstorm, and the storm we got earlier this week have basically proven that those predictions were accurate.

The storm that hit Maine earlier this week caused some serious flooding damage to our coastal towns and cities.  The Portland water level hit 13.84’.  That’s not too far from record high of 14.17’, which was set in 1978.

Right now, it is looking like this next storm could be even worse.

According to WCSH 6’s Jason Nappi, the coast will see historic flooding.  He broke down his meteorologist-speak into plain English by saying,

“that will put the coast on the warm side of the storm, with a southeast wind developing.”

Right now, Nappi is predicting the water level in Portland could hit 14.1’ and the coast could see 5’ waves.

According to the National Weather Service, the coast of Maine can expect to see a mix of snow and rain start at about 3 AM on Saturday.  Winds will be somewhere between 20 and 30 MPH, but the coast could see gusts of up to 50 MPH.

In Central Maine, the precipitation will start sometime before 5 AM on Saturday.  Once it warms up, we can expect heavy rains.  It will be windy and Central Maine can expect gusts of up to 40 MPH.

Temperatures across most of Maine will be in the upper-40s on Saturday.

Please take the necessary precautions and be safe.