High wind warnings have been issued for the Washington coast, emergency service offices say.

The National Weather Service in Seattle issued a warning in effect from 9 a.m. Wednesday through the early morning hours of Thursday, predicting sustained southeast and south winds at 25-40 mph, gusting to 55 mph, along with heavy rain. Coastal areas of Grays Harbor County will be affected, including Ocean Shores, Westport, Hoquiam, Aberdeen, Moclips and Taholah. Peak winds will be Wednesday afternoon and ease that evening.

Away from the coast, gusty wind conditions and heavy rain will impact the entire region, said Charles Wallace, deputy emergency services director for Grays Harbor County.

All area rivers will rise but unlikely to reach flood stage, he said.

For Pacific County, the National Weather Service in Portland issued a high wind warning, to be in effect from noon Wednesday until 11 p.m. Wednesday evening. South winds of 30 to 40 mph with gusts to 60-65 mph are forecast for the beaches and headlands. Coastal communities will see winds of 25-35 mph with gusts 50-55 mph. Winds will increase Wednesday afternoon into Wednesday evening.

The winds may be strong enough to damage trees, especially as leaves are still on the trees and cause power interruptions, said Scott McDougall, director of the Pacific County Emergency Management Agency

Another storm is headed this way over the weekend, said Wallace, which at this time, appears to be comparable to the Wednesday storm. The storm may bring heavy rainfall, increasing the possibility some area streams and rivers could approach flood stage. At this point the storm is still a few days away. Better storm models will be available later in the week.

Heavy rainfall accumulations from Wednesday morning through Wednesday night are forecast to be between 1.5” and 2”.