Snow levels to drop as storm pummels Northwest this weekend
By
Courtney Travis, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Published Feb 22, 2020 6:07 PM EDT
Following a drier stretch in the Northwest, another storm is poised to bring rain and snow to the region before the end of the month.
After spotty wet weather started off the weekend, a more potent storm tracked into the region Saturday night.
After midnight, the storm spread wet weather into the western parts of Washington, before expanding south and east through Sunday morning.
Areas west of the Cascades in both Washington and Oregon will remain mostly rain, including cities such as Portland, Oregon, and Seattle.
Rainfall amounts will range from 0.25-0.50 of an inch, with isolated amounts as high as 1.5 inches of rain.
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However, some colder air across interior parts of the Northwest will create more wintry precipitation from the Cascades on east.
While precipitation will be light across south-central Washington, an inch or two of snow may accumulate in northern Washington from Omak to Spokane. The higher elevations of Oregon, east of Pendleton, will also accumulate an inch or two.
The steadiest and heaviest snow will be reserved for the Cascades and will persist through Sunday and into early Monday,
"In the Cascades, snow levels will drop as the storm becomes stronger, getting down to around 2,000-2,500 feet across northern Washington," said AccuWeather Meteorologist Brett Edwards.
In Oregon, snow levels will drop to around 3,500 feet in northern Oregon and around 4,500 feet farther south in the Cascades. Several inches of snow are likely at Santiam Pass and Willamette Pass, which could make for difficult traveling conditions along US 20 and state road 58.
In the highest elevations, 1-2 feet of snow is likely.
Several inches of snow will also pile up in the northern Rockies of Idaho and Montana. The storm will arrive in this region Sunday afternoon and linger through the day on Monday.
In addition to the rain and snow, windy conditions are expected with this storm. Widespread wind gusts of 25-35 mph are expected, with gusts as high as 50 mph in the higher elevations.
Even as the precipitation lessens across the region Sunday night, some areas may remain breezy through the first half of the day on Monday.
This storm will break the stretch of dry weather the Northwest has enjoyed recently.
Seattle recorded 12.5 inches of rain from the start of 2020 through Feb. 12, a whopping 175 percent of the normal rainfall during that time of the year. Since then, the wet weather has tapered off, only adding another 0.25 of an inch in the following week.
Many other locations across the Northwest also had near- or above-normal rainfall so far this year, following flooding in parts of Oregon in January.
Following this early-week storm, the Northwest will have the opportunity to dry out yet again, lessening the threat of flooding to return. The middle and end of the week look fairly dry in the western half of the country.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
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News / Winter Weather
Snow levels to drop as storm pummels Northwest this weekend
By Courtney Travis, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
Published Feb 22, 2020 6:07 PM EDT
Following a drier stretch in the Northwest, another storm is poised to bring rain and snow to the region before the end of the month.
After spotty wet weather started off the weekend, a more potent storm tracked into the region Saturday night.
After midnight, the storm spread wet weather into the western parts of Washington, before expanding south and east through Sunday morning.
Areas west of the Cascades in both Washington and Oregon will remain mostly rain, including cities such as Portland, Oregon, and Seattle.
Rainfall amounts will range from 0.25-0.50 of an inch, with isolated amounts as high as 1.5 inches of rain.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
However, some colder air across interior parts of the Northwest will create more wintry precipitation from the Cascades on east.
While precipitation will be light across south-central Washington, an inch or two of snow may accumulate in northern Washington from Omak to Spokane. The higher elevations of Oregon, east of Pendleton, will also accumulate an inch or two.
The steadiest and heaviest snow will be reserved for the Cascades and will persist through Sunday and into early Monday,
"In the Cascades, snow levels will drop as the storm becomes stronger, getting down to around 2,000-2,500 feet across northern Washington," said AccuWeather Meteorologist Brett Edwards.
In Oregon, snow levels will drop to around 3,500 feet in northern Oregon and around 4,500 feet farther south in the Cascades. Several inches of snow are likely at Santiam Pass and Willamette Pass, which could make for difficult traveling conditions along US 20 and state road 58.
In the highest elevations, 1-2 feet of snow is likely.
Several inches of snow will also pile up in the northern Rockies of Idaho and Montana. The storm will arrive in this region Sunday afternoon and linger through the day on Monday.
In addition to the rain and snow, windy conditions are expected with this storm. Widespread wind gusts of 25-35 mph are expected, with gusts as high as 50 mph in the higher elevations.
Even as the precipitation lessens across the region Sunday night, some areas may remain breezy through the first half of the day on Monday.
Related:
This storm will break the stretch of dry weather the Northwest has enjoyed recently.
Seattle recorded 12.5 inches of rain from the start of 2020 through Feb. 12, a whopping 175 percent of the normal rainfall during that time of the year. Since then, the wet weather has tapered off, only adding another 0.25 of an inch in the following week.
Many other locations across the Northwest also had near- or above-normal rainfall so far this year, following flooding in parts of Oregon in January.
Following this early-week storm, the Northwest will have the opportunity to dry out yet again, lessening the threat of flooding to return. The middle and end of the week look fairly dry in the western half of the country.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo