Coastal Flood — Coastal Cumberland, Maine

2019-10-28 · Coastal Cumberland, Maine

Event narrative

A King Tide combined with a weak coastal low which brought a foot of storm surge and near shore waves of 6 to 8 feet during the noon high tide. Storm tide water levels peaked at 12.45 feet at the Portland tide gauge. Flood stage is 12 ft. Minor flooding occurred on local wharf side streets near Js Oyster Bar in Portland with up to 1 foot of inundation. Splash-over was also reported at numerous locations along coastal roads due to pounding surf.

Wider weather episode

A developing coastal low moved up the Northeast coast from Long Island, New York across Cape Cod, Massachusetts and into the Gulf of Maine on October 28th. This allowed for northeasterly winds up to 25 kts to generate nearshore waves of 6 to 8 feet and a storm surge of 1 to 1.5 feet. This modest storm coincided with a period of high astronomical tides, with the King Tide being the primary reason for the coastal flood event.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 861301. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.