WeatherWatcher: Rain returns for now

Photo by Carl Dinse

Rain has returned and remains in the forecast for the next couple of days. We are looking at high temperatures in the upper 30's, maybe low 40's for Thursday and Friday. Low temperatures for the next 7 days are still looking to be near or below freezing.

For Thursday afternoon into Thursday evening we are expecting rain at times, with breezy winds out of the south. We could see a couple wind gusts to 35 mph Thursday night. Friday through Saturday night we are expecting rain showers, highs near the mid 40's and lows in the 30's.

This should put an end to most of the snow and slush in the area by Saturday evening.

On Sunday, the threat of snow returns, but remains marginal at this time. Snow levels are expected to hover between 300-500 feet from Sunday through Monday night. Right now the forecast is calling for rain and snow mixed showers through this period. No accumulations are expected right now. 

Tuesday morning could start with snow showers but change over to rain showers in the afternoon, with highs near 40°F. The threat of rain showers continues into Wednesday next week.

Long range: We are still looking at a high probability of colder than normal temperatures with near or slightly above average precipitation. This is probably not the last snow event for this winter season. We have off and on chances of snow or snow mixed with rain in the longer range forecasts into at least the first week of March.

On the topic of snow storms, many have compared this event to other record February snows in this region. The 1916 big snow leaving 35+ inches of snow on the ground was actually fairly short lived. In addition, that week in 1916 was several degrees warmer on average than this past week of snow.

I'm still working on comparisons and will do a separate report to compare this series of snow events with other historic events in the past. One thing is certain, this past week and a half will be among the greats for Seattle area snows. Shoreline's total snow accumulation since February 2nd was just shy of 20 inches. This was the biggest snowfall since December 1996 where we had 24 inches on the ground before a changeover to a very warm rain.

For current weather conditions visit www.shorelineweather.com