12-13 Discussion

We have now entered the “calm after the storm” with this weekend behind us. The pineapple express that came through Saturday and Sunday was a real soaker and it broke a few records throughout the area. Seattle set records on both Saturday and Sunday for rainfall. Here are some other cities that broke records on Sunday:

Olympia – 1.80”

Bellingham – 1.61”

Port Angeles – 1.18”

Renton – 1.92”

Shelton – 3.10”

Seattle – 2.19”

A few rivers are still under FLOOD WARNINGS including the Nooksack and Skagit in the north, Snoqualmie and Snohomish in the central Washington area, the Green River upstream from Auburn, the Chehalis near Grand Mound, and the Skokomish. All these rivers have crested upstream and most should fall below flood stage tonight. The Skokomish in particular will not reach below flood stage for a few days as it is typically very slow to recede.

The worst is behind us but tonight another cold front will move through. Rain will begin tonight but it will not be threatening to any of our flood issues. Cooler air will be moving in which will lower snow levels to 2500 feet tonight so rain that falls in the mountains will be in the form of snow, not adding to any of our river flooding. Temps will be in the low 40s tonight.

A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY is up for the Cascades for several inches of snow that could fall tonight through tomorrow afternoon. We could see around 6” up at Snoqualmie pass and around 10” at Mt. Baker and the higher elevation passes. It is getting back to normal around here.

A SE wind will also pick up tonight. Central Puget Sound may see 20-30mph gusts with some higher gusts up North. This is only worrisome because of the very saturated ground and trees will not be as stable. This is something to keep an eye on.  

Tomorrow will be mostly cloudy and we’ll see the rain turn to showers by the time the morning commute comes around. Highs will be in the mid 40s and showers will be around for much of the day. We’ll stay breezy as well with 15-25mph gusts.

There is a chance for some showers Wednesday and Thursday but also a few sunbreaks. Highs will drop down to the low 40s, normal for this time of year.

Friday is looking like our one dry day but also a bit cooler. Highs will hover around 40. The weekend doesn’t look too bad now but can’t rule out a shower or two.

Stay dry!

Aaron Hill

KOMO Weather Intern