1 heavy snow, as filed by the National Weather Service.
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Spokane, WA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Dec 30, 2:30 PM PST, 30 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SPOKANE WASHINGTON 230 PM PST THU DEC 30 2004 .SYNOPSIS...AN UPPER LEVEL TROUGH WILL REMAIN OVER THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST THROUGH THE WEEKEND KEEPING A COOL AND UNSETTLED WEATHER PATTERN OVER THE REGION. && .DISCUSSION... THE UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE CENTER OFF THE PACIFIC COAST IS HANGING AROUND LIKE A HOLIDAY HOUSE GUEST THAT WONT LEAVE. AN ENTIRE SERIES OF MINOR SHORTWAVE TROFS ARE LINED UP IN THE FLOW AROUND THIS LOW PRESSURE CENTER. THIS IS BRINGING PERIODIC PRECIPITATION TO THE AREA. TODAY MUCH OF THE LOWER ATMOSPHERE REMAINED BELOW FREEZING AND THE PRECIPITATION HAS BEEN MAINLY SNOW. ALTHOUGH THERE HAVE BEEN EXTENDED PERIODS OF SNOWFALL...VERY LITTLE IN THE WAY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCUMULATION HAS RESULTED. THE FORECAST ISSUE FOR TONIGHT AND TOMORROW CONCERNS THE IMPACT OF UPSTREAM SHORTWAVES IN THE FLOW AROUND THE UPPER LOW. MODEL GUIDANCE IS IN GENERAL AGREEMENT FOR THE FORECAST OF THE UPPER LEVEL FEATURES. HOWEVER...MOS TEMPERATURE NUMBERS HAVE BEEN RUNNING A BIT HIGH IN THE ETA MODEL. GIVEN THE SUBSTANTIAL CLOUD COVER OVER THE AREA A PERSISTENCE TEMPERATURE FORECAST SEEMS IN ORDER. IN ADDITION TO MOS TEMPERATURE NUMBERS THE MODELS ARE HAVING A HARD TIME WITH THE PLACEMENT AND TIMING OF PRECIPITATION ALONG THE EASTERN CASCADES. WILL RELY ON CONCEPTUAL MODELS AND PERSISTENCE HERE AS WELL. TONIGHT...THE LARGE SCALE SYNOPTIC PATTERN INDICATES A FAIR AMOUNT OF LARGE SCALE ASCENT AS EVIDENT BY DEEP LAYER DIVERGENCE OF Q. THIS PROVIDES BROAD ELEVATED THREAT OF PRECIPITATION. HOWEVER...THE SHORTWAVE TROF ENERGY ROTATING AROUND THE UPPER LOW RESIDES MORE ON THE SMALL SCALE AND NOT ALWAYS EVIDENT IN THE Q-VECTOR FIELD. GIVEN THE STEADY SOUTHERLY FLOW IN THE LOWER LEVELS...THE PERIODIC SHORTWAVES ARE PROVIDING ENOUGH ADDITIONAL FORCING TO CREATE THESE BANDS OF HIGHER PRECIPITATION. THE NEXT OF THESE SHORTWAVES IS NOW MOVING ACROSS SOUTHERN AND CENTRAL OREGON. IT SHOULD BEGIN TO MOVE INTO OUR SOUTHERN ZONES NEAR MIDNIGHT. AS IT LIFTS NORTHWARD ACROSS THE AREA THE THREAT OF LIGHT SNOWFALL IS ALL BUT CERTAIN. ACCUMULATIONS ARE EXPECTED TO BE LIGHT AND VERY SIMILAR TO TODAY IN CHARACTER. THE LOW LEVEL FLOW AGAIN FAVORS THE EAST CASCADES... NORTHERN TIER AND SPOKANE CDA AREAS. TOMORROW...IT WILL TAKE SOME TIME FOR THE AFORE MENTIONED SHORTWAVE TO MOVE NORTH AND OUT OF THE AREA INTO CANADA. IT IS LIKELY THAT MUCH OF THE SNOWFALL ASSOCIATED WITH THIS WAVE WILL LAST INTO THE MORNING HOURS. THIS SNOW THEN WILL BEGIN TO TAPER OFF DURING THE AFTERNOON. THE FORECAST WILL BE WORDED AS SUCH. /LERICOS FRIDAY NIGHT THROUGH SUNDAY...UPPER LEVEL LOW OFF THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST COAST WILL CONTINUE TO SPIN OFF SOME ENERGY AND MOISTURE UP ACROSS OUR FORECAST AREA. LATEST RUNS OF THE ETA AND THE GFS SHOW SOME ISENTROPIC ASCENT ALONG WITH UPSLOPE FLOW INTO THE CASCADE EAST SLOPES AND VALLEYS FRIDAY NIGHT AND INTO SATURDAY. I HAVE RAISED POPS THERE TO LIKELY ALONG WITH MORE QPF AND SNOW ACCUMULATIONS. THIS COULD POSSIBLY BE A SIGNIFICANT EVENT FOR THE NORTHERN MOUNTAINS AND THE EAST SLOPES OF THE CASCADES...BUT CONFIDENCE IS LOW TO ISSUE A WATCH AT THIS TIME. THE TRACK RECORD FOR BOTH OF THESE MODELS HAVE BEEN RATHER POOR WITH SNOW STORMS AS OF LATE...SO WE WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR AND ISSUE A PRODUCT FRIDAY IF IT IS NEEDED. MOISTURE SOURCE AND ISENTROPIC ASCENT SHIFTS EAST ON SUNDAY WITH CHANCE POPS LINGERING OUT WEST AND THE SNOW CONTINUING OVER IDAHO. TEMPERATURE PROFILES THROUGHOUT THE REST OF THE SHORT TERM WILL BE BELOW FREEZING WHICH WILL MAKE PRECIPITATION FORECASTING RATHER EASY WITH JUST SNOW EXPECTED. ARCTIC AIRMASS CURRENTLY SLIDING DOWN THE ROCKY FRONT WILL FOR THE MOST PART STAY WELL EAST OF OUR AREA WITH ONLY JUST SOME SEEPAGE EXPECTED IN THE NORTHEAST THIS WEEKEND. SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH THURSDAY...THE UPPER LEVEL LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL CONTINUE TO DOMINATE THE WEATHER PATTERN THROUGH THE FIRST PART OF THE EXTENDED FORECAST PERIOD. THE MID RANGE MODELS ARE INDICATING THE UPPER LOW TO FINALLY CUT-OFF AS A REX BLOCK DEVELOPS SOMEWHERE IN THE GULF OF ALASKA. THE MAIN QUESTION IS JUST WHERE DOES THAT LOW FINALLY CUT-OFF. THE ECMWF/CANADIAN BELIEVES THE LOW WILL CUT-OFF NEAR SAN FRANCISCO BY MONDAY AFTERNOON AND SLOWLY RETROGRADES OFF THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIAN COAST THROUGH THE WEEK. THIS WOULD PUT THE REGION IN A MAINLY DRY AND COOL NORTHERLY FLOW. IF THE GFS IS BELIEVED THE UPPER LEVEL LOW CUTS-OFF NEAR THE SOUTHERN WASHINGTON CASCADES BY TUESDAY MORNING AND LINGERS OVER THE REGION THE REMAINDER OF THE WEEK. THIS WOULD RESULT IN A CONTINUATION OF UNSETTLED WEATHER AS MOISTURE AND WEAK DISTURBANCES GET WRAPPED AROUND THE MAIN LOW. THE ECMWF HAS BEEN DOING A MUCH BETTER JOB IN THE EXTENDED PERIOD AND WOULD BE INCLINED TO LEAN IN THAT DIRECTION. AS SUCH WILL SHOW A DRYING TREND IN THE FORECAST THROUGH THE EXTENDED PERIOD AND LEAVE LOW END CHANCE POPS ALONG THE IDAHO PANAHNDLE AS ANY WEAK DISTURBANCES IN THE NORTHERLY FLOW WILL MAINLY EFFECT THOSE ZONES. SURFACE GRADIENT BECOMING NORTH/NORTHEAST AND WILL ALLOW MODIFIED ARCTIC AIR TO SEEP THROUGH NORTH/SOUTH GAPS. WILL INDICATE COOLER THAN NORMAL TEMPERATURES...BUT WILL STAY ABOVE MODEL GUIDANCE. /TOBIN && .PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS... SPOKANE 029 030 024 028 021 026/ 80 80 50 50 40 30 COEUR DALENE 030 030 025 029 022 027/ 80 80 50 50 50 40 PULLMAN 028 033 026 032 023 029/ 70 70 50 50 40 30 LEWISTON 028 036 028 034 025 034/ 80 80 50 50 40 30 COLVILLE 028 028 021 026 018 025/ 80 80 60 60 60 50 SANDPOINT 030 028 021 025 018 024/ 80 80 60 60 60 60 WALLACE 029 027 022 025 019 024/ 80 80 60 70 70 70 MOSES LAKE 029 034 026 033 023 028/ 80 80 30 30 30 20 WENATCHEE 025 031 027 029 024 026/ 80 80 60 40 40 20 OMAK 026 029 027 028 024 027/ 80 80 60 60 50 40 && .OTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... .WA...NONE. .ID...NONE.
HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SPOKANE WA 906 PM PST WED DEC 29 2004 IDZ001>004-026-027-WAZ031>038-041>044-301430- NORTHERN PANHANDLE-COEUR DALENE AREA-IDAHO PALOUSE- CENTRAL PANHANDLE MOUNTAINS-LEWISTON AREA- LEWIS AND SOUTHERN NEZ PERCE COUNTIES-NORTHEAST BLUE MOUNTAINS- LOWER GARFIELD AND ASOTIN COUNTIES-WASHINGTON PALOUSE- MOSES LAKE AREA-UPPER COLUMBIA BASIN-SPOKANE AREA- NORTHEAST MOUNTAINS-OKANOGAN HIGHLANDS-WENATCHEE AREA- EAST SLOPES NORTHERN CASCADES-OKANOGAN VALLEY-WATERVILLE PLATEAU- 906 PM PST WED DEC 29 2004 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR THE AREAS LISTED ABOVE. .DAY ONE...TODAY. THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW. .DAY TWO THROUGH SEVEN...THURSDAY THROUGH WEDNESDAY. THE PROBABILITY FOR WIDESPREAD HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS LOW.
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
A heavy snow event was reported over the northern Blue Mountains during the afternoon hours of the 30th of December. A spotter near the town of Anatone reported 6 inches of new snow with most falling in just three hours.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Washington in 2004Every state in 2004This day in weather historyWarnings in Washington, December 2004
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5429402.