WeatherFanatics: Another Round of Heavy Rain, Flooding, Strong Winds and Snow Is Impacting the Pacific Northwest

Monday, November 16, 2015

Another Round of Heavy Rain, Flooding, Strong Winds and Snow Is Impacting the Pacific Northwest

Linda Lam
Published: November 16,2015
Another round of heavy rain, mountain snow and strong winds will blast into the Pacific Northwest through early Wednesday morning. The region has already dealt with its share of heavy rain in recent days, and this additional rainfall could contribute to more flooding and possible landslides. In addition, strong winds could down trees and cause power outages in some areas Tuesday.

Current Radar with Watches and Warnings

Forecast: More Rain, Strong Winds and Heavy Snow

After a brief break late Sunday into early Monday, another couple of weather systems will slam into the Northwest U.S. through Tuesday night with heavy rain, strong winds and mountain snow.
A winter storm warning has been issued for the Washington Cascades through early Tuesday with snow levels starting out as low as 1,000-1,500 feet. The National Weather Service said 1-2 feet of snow was possible at pass level, including Stevens Pass and Snoqualmie Pass. Snow levels will rise to 5,000-6,500 feet by early Tuesday morning turning the precipitation to rain in many locations.
(MAPS: Interactive Radar)
By Tuesday, snow levels may be as high as 7,000 feet, allowing very heavy rain to impact the Olympics and the Washington Cascades. Additional rainfall amounts of 5-8 inches (locally higher) are expected in the Olympic and Cascade Mountains Monday night-Wednesday. The National Weather Service has issued a flood watch for northwest Washington through late Wednesday. This additional heavy rain may raise the risk of landslides in the region and result in more river flooding.
(INTERACTIVE: NWS Flood Alerts)

Flood Alerts

Rainfall Forecast

Another concern is the potential for strong winds, especially Tuesday, in the Northwest as an area of low pressure moves inland across British Columbia.

Wind Advisories, Watches and Warnings

High wind warnings and wind advisories have been issued for much of Washington along with northern Oregon. Wind gusts up to 60 mph are possible in the lower elevations on Tuesday, with gusts up to 90 mph in the mountains. If these strong winds do develop there is a high risk of trees being toppled due to the saturated soils from the recent heavy rainfall. This includes parts of the Seattle-Tacoma-Olympia corridor.
Strong winds are also likely to affect parts of Idaho and Montana later Tuesday into Wednesday as the low pressure system slides eastward through Canada.

Near a Foot of Rain Reported Already

According to the National Weather Service, widespread rainfall amounts of 3-6 inches with local totals of 9-11 inches have already been recorded in the mountains of western Washington in the three days ending Sunday. In the rain shadow of the Olympic Mountains, rainfall in the Seattle-Tacoma-Olympia corridor has been lighter. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport saw 4.45 inches of rain Thursday-Sunday.
This rain sent some rivers into moderate and briefly major flood levels this past weekend, including the Snohomish and Snoqualmie Rivers, flooding roads and rural areas in the foothills of the Cascades east of Seattle. In addition, the rain has contributed to landslides in the region, including two on Saturday along the main railroad between Tacoma and Nisqually.

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