Storms to shift north, drop soaking rain and snow across Pacific Northwest

After causing devastating flooding and mudslides in California earlier this week, heavy rain and snow will shift northward into the Pacific Northwest to end the week.

“An area of high pressure building off the Southwest coast will force future storms to track much farther north into this weekend,” said AccuWeather Meteorologist Brett Rathbun.

Air moves clockwise in and around areas of high pressure, which promotes calm, clear weather.

Storms moving into the Pacific Northwest will bring strong winds and soaking rainfall, inundating areas from Redding, California, through Seattle into Thursday night.

Both Portland, Oregon, and Seattle have received about one-fourth of their normal January precipitation since Jan. 1, putting them right on track to have a month of average rainfall.

While the threat of mudslides will exist, conditions will not be as conducive as they were in central and Southern California.

Precipitation is expected to fall as rain over the Oregon Cascades through Thursday before a changeover to snow takes place just before the storm moves away later Thursday night.

Meanwhile, heavy snow will bury the Washington Cascades throughout the duration of the event.

This will contribute to an already healthy snowpack for ski resorts across the region, including Jackson Hole and Big Sky.

Anyone planning outdoor activities such as skiing, backpacking or hiking should prepare for cold, windy and soaking winter weather. Secondary roads may become impassable for a time.

The storm track will shift even farther to the north this weekend.

A welcome dry period will continue in California.

“High pressure will set up across the Rockies over the weekend which typically results in a Santa Ana wind event for Southern California,” Rathbun said.

“Fortunately, the rain this week has moistened the ground enough to prevent any significant threat for wildfires.”

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