High tides, rain, wind: Seacoast may see floods similar to Jan. 10 storm

High tides on Sunday combined with steady rainfall could lead to coastal flooding similar to the first (and less severe) of two consecutive coastal storms that hit Seacoast New Hampshire and Maine in January, according to forecasters.

The National Weather Service in Gray, Maine is tracking tides along the two states' coastline ahead of Sunday, when the region is expected to see approximately 1.5 inches of rainfall. Moderate flooding is expected.

In Hampton on Sunday, tides are expected to surge roughly 12.4 feet high around noon, according to meteorologist Jon Palmer. In Portland, Maine, tides could reach 13.7 feet.

“We are definitely looking at some significant coastal flooding along our coastline,” Palmer said.

Tides remind forecasters of Jan. 10 storm

The projection for Sunday’s tides mirrors a Jan. 10 storm that flooded local waterfront communities, caused damage to private property and businesses and weakend public infrastructure. Roadways in multiple communities were closed as local officials began to clean up the mess.

Three days later, on Jan. 13, a more impactful coastal storm and flooding event struck the Seacoast and southern Maine, causing widespread damage and leading local, state and federal officials to call for disaster funding relief.

More: FEMA tours storm damage at Hampton Beach, Rye. Will funds follow?

“At this time, it looks like (the tides are) going to stay just below the ones from Jan. 13,” Palmer said of this weekend’s tides. “It’s probably going to be about equally as impactful as those on Jan. 10. The 10th was the third-highest (recorded tides) and then the 13th was the record. This might be pretty similar to what we experienced on the 10th. On the 10th we experienced moderate coastal flooding.”

When to expect rain in Seacoast this weekend

Rain will begin on Saturday evening around 10 p.m. and continue until early afternoon Sunday before blowing out to the Canadian Maritimes, Palmer said. Wind gusts along the coastline are anticipated to hit 50 mph on Sunday morning, though by Sunday afternoon gusts should only top out at 20 mph.

“This is a quick moving system that the wind will drop off pretty quickly,” Palmer said.

“With 50 miles per hour wind gusts and weakened infrastructures, I could see at least some isolated power outages,” he added.

Inland parts of Maine and New Hampshire could potentially see snowfall. Locally, Sanford, Maine, and the Rochester, New Hampshire area could see snowflakes, though not to the point of accumulation, he said.

“We’re looking at a pretty much all rain event for the Seacoast, but parts of interior Maine and New Hampshire could see a decent amount of snow,” Palmer said.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Seacoast NH, Maine brace for Sunday floods similar to Jan. 10 storm