Blizzard and Heavy Snow in Washington, February 5 to 9, 2008

Name: Blizzard and Heavy Snow in Washington, February 5 to 9, 2008
Start: 2008-02-05T10:00
End: 2008-02-09T00:00
Location: Washington

February 5 to 9, 2008 · NWS SEW · 6 events in 3 counties and zones

On February 1st, snow depth at Snoqualmie Pass was 130 inches, or 165 percent of normal. On Friday, Feb.

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 6

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.

What happened

The episode as NWS SEW wrote it up.

On February 1st, snow depth at Snoqualmie Pass was 130 inches, or 165 percent of normal. On Friday, Feb. 8th, all 3 passes - Snoqualmie, Stevens and White, were all closed, the first time this had happened in 11 years. While the snowfall did not cause any damage, the Washington DOT's snow removal budget was already over budget by $4.6 million. Stevens Pass ski area suspended operations for Friday and Saturday since no one could get there.

What forecasters said that day

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 Seattle, WA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 5, 9:00 AM PST, 1 hour earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Feb 5, 9:00 AM PST, 1 hour before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA
900 AM PST TUE FEB 5 2008

.SYNOPSIS...A STRONG COLD FRONT WILL SWEEP THROUGH THE AREA TODAY.
ANOTHER VIGOROUS FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL MOVE THROUGH THE REGION
WEDNESDAY NIGHT. THE LOWLANDS WILL SEE WINDY CONDITIONS WITH EACH
FRONT. SNOW WILL BE HEAVY AT TIMES IN THE MOUNTAINS.

&&

.SHORT TERM...A DEEP SFC LOW MAKES LANDFALL EAST OF THE CHARLOTTES
TODAY AS THE ASSOCIATED FRONT MOVES THRU WRN WA MIDDAY. SOUTHERLY
GALES MOST WATERS TODAY THEN A WLY GALE COASTAL WATERS AND DVLPG IN
THE STRAIT THIS AFTERNOON. MOST OF THE POSTFRONTAL SHOWERS WITH THE
PSCZ THIS EVENING WILL PROBABLY BE WELL OFF INTO THE CASCADES WITH
STRONG WLY FLOW ALOFT...WINDS AT H850 WILL BE WEST 40KTS THRU THE
EVENING TAPERING OFF TO 25 OR 30KTS BY DAYBREAK WED. THE SECOND
FRONTAL SYSTEM APCHG 160W THIS MORNING MAY HAVE MORE MOISTURE THAN
THIS FIRST ONE...IT CERTAINLY LOOKS MORE ORGANIZED. A DEEPENING SFC
LOW IS THRU THE CHARLOTTES WED EVENING. AGAIN WLY GALES OVER THE
COASTAL WATERS AND INTO THE STRAIT...WITH A PSCZ DVLPG BHND THE
FRONT. THIS SECOND FRONTAL SYSTEM LIKE THE ONE TODAY MAY BE WORTH
WIND ADVISORIES  SOME AREAS OF WRN WA WED NITE AND THU MORNING. BOTH
SYSTEMS HAVE WLY FLOW ALOFT AT H850 ARND 45KT BEHIND EACH FROPA FOR
GOOD OROGRAPHIC SNOWFALL. MM

.LONG TERM...PREVIOUSLY...MID LEVEL HEIGHTS BEGIN TO BUILD FRIDAY
AND CONTINUE RIGHT INTO SATURDAY AS A RIDGE BUILD OVER THE WEST
COAST. PRECIPITATION GRADUALLY DIMINISHES FRIDAY NIGHT AS SNOW
LEVELS RISE. THE NEXT FRONT IS EXPECTED TO CROSS THE AREA LATER
SATURDAY...AND WITH RELATIVELY WARM AIR MASS OVER THE REGION WE
COULD END UP WITH RAIN FALLING AT PASS LEVEL WHICH WOULD WEIGHT DOWN
THE SNOW PACK SOME. AFTER THE FRONT PASSES COOLER AIR INFILTRATES
THE REGION BUT NOT QUITE A COOL AS WHAT WE HAVE HAD OF LATE SO
INSTEAD OF SNOW LEVELS 500-1500 FT IT WILL BE MORE LIKE 2000-3000 FT
SUNDAY ONWARD. OVERALL ALL VERY ACTIVE PATTERN WELL INTO NEXT NEXT
WEEK FOR OCCASIONAL BREEZY AND RAINY PERIODS. WINTER CONTINUES.
CERNIGLIA

&&

.AVIATION...CEILINGS MOSTLY IN THE 1500 TO 2500 FOOT RANGE THIS
MORNING. COLD FRONT REACHING COAST AROUND 18Z...KSEA 21Z...CASCADES
00Z. LOCAL CEILINGS DROPPING TO AT OR BELOW 1000 FEET RIGHT WITH AND
BEHIND THE FRONT FOR A FEW HOURS. CONVERGENCE ZONE DEVELOPING NEAR
EAST ENTRANCE OF THE STRAIT BUT WITH THE STRONG FLOW ALOFT EXPECT
CONVERGENCE TO GET PUSHED INTO THE CASCADES TONIGHT. WITH THE STRONG
ONSHORE FLOW BEHIND THE FRONT CEILINGS REMAINING IN THE 1000 TO 2000
FOOT RANGE THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS INTO WEDNESDAY MORNING. WINDS
AT THE 5000 FOOT LEVEL SOUTHERLY 50 TO 60 KNOTS EASING TO AROUND 30
KNOTS BY 00Z.

AT KSEA...MVFR CEILINGS TO CONTINUING THROUGH THE EVENING HOURS WITH
TEMPO CEILINGS BELOW 1000 FEET 20Z-00Z. SOUTHERLY WIND 10 TO 15 KT
WILL BECOME SOUTHWEST BEHIND TODAYS FRONT...WITH GUSTS OF 20 TO 25
KT WELL INTO THE EVENING HOURS. FELTON

&&

.MARINE...A VIGOROUS PACIFIC FRONTAL SYSTEM WILL AFFECT THE FORECAST
AREA THROUGH TONIGHT. A STRONG COLD FRONT SHOULD REACH THE COAST
AROUND 18Z TODAY THEN THE INLAND WATERS BY 21Z...WITH STRONG ONSHORE
FLOW IN THE WAKE OF THE FRONT TONIGHT. SOUTHERLY GALES FOR THE
COASTAL WATERS...ENTRANCES TO THE STRAIT...ADMIRALTY INLET...AND
NORTHERN INLAND WATERS. WESTERLY GALES THROUGH THE STRAIT ARE
EXPECTED BEHIND THE FRONT THIS AFTERNOON WITH SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY
WINDS IN THE PUGET SOUND THROUGH TONIGHT. WESTERLY SWELL IN THE 18
TO 20 FOOT RANGE ARE EXPECTED TO REACH THE COASTAL WATERS EARLY
WEDNESDAY. ANOTHER SYSTEM MAY BRING ANOTHER POSSIBLE ROUND OF GALES
TO THE WATERS LATE WEDNESDAY INTO EARLY THURSDAY. FELTON

&&

.AVALANCHE...THE STRONG FRONT SHOULD CROSS THE OLYMPICS AND CASCADES
TUESDAY LATE MORNING AND MIDDAY. THIS SHOULD CAUSE STRONG CREST
LEVEL WINDS AND HEAVY SNOWFALL. THIS SHOULD BUILD NEW DEEP DENSER
SNOW LAYERS ON MANY LEE SLOPES. AN AVALANCHE WARNING IS NOW IN
EFFECT FOR THE OLYMPICS AND CASCADES NEAR AND WEST OF THE CREST FOR
TUESDAY LATE MORNING THROUGH TUESDAY NIGHT. FERBER

&&

.SEW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
 .WINTER STORM WARNING FOR THE OLYMPICS AND WEST SLOPES OF THE
  CASCADES.
 .WIND ADVISORY FOR THE WESTER STRAIT OF JUAN DE FUCA AND THE
  NW INTERIOR.
 .GALE WARNING ALL WATERS EXCEPT PUGET SOUND AND HOOD CANAL.
 .SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY PUGET SOUND AND HOOD CANAL.
 .SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR ROUGH BAR CONDITIONS GRAYS HARBOR BAR.

WEATHER.GOV/SEATTLE

Event by event

5 heavy snow, 1 blizzard. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Olympics

When: February 5, 10:00 AM PST to February 6, 10:00 AM PST
Where: Olympics forecast zone
Reported by: Other Federal Agency

Hurrican Ridge got 20 inches in 24 hrs.

Heavy Snow, West Slopes Central Cascades and Passes

When: February 6, 12:00 AM PST to February 7, 12:00 AM PST
Where: West Slopes Central Cascades and Passes forecast zone
Reported by: Department of Highways

Stevens Pass got 13 inches of snow in 12 hours ending at 9 PM on the 6th.

Heavy Snow, West Slopes Northern Cascades and Passes

When: February 6, 12:00 AM PST to February 7, 12:00 AM PST
Where: West Slopes Northern Cascades and Passes forecast zone
Reported by: Department of Highways

Stevens Pass got 13 inches of snow in 12 hours ending at 9 PM on the 6th.

Blizzard, West Slopes Central Cascades and Passes

When: February 7, 12:00 AM PST to February 8, 12:00 AM PST
Where: West Slopes Central Cascades and Passes forecast zone
Reported by: Park/Forest Service

Besides getting heavy snow, White Pass and Paradise had wind gusts to 89 mph and 81 mph.

Heavy Snow, West Slopes Central Cascades and Passes

When: February 8, 12:00 AM PST to February 9, 12:00 AM PST
Where: West Slopes Central Cascades and Passes forecast zone
Reported by: Newspaper

About 10 inches of snow, plus some-what warm and windy conditions, created avalanche hazards on Snoqualmie, Stevens and White passes. The three day total snowfall at Snoqualmie Pass was 28 inches, at Stevens Pass 34 inches.

Heavy Snow, West Slopes Northern Cascades and Passes

When: February 8, 12:00 AM PST to February 9, 12:00 AM PST
Where: West Slopes Northern Cascades and Passes forecast zone
Reported by: Park/Forest Service

Mount Baker received 16 inches of new snow.

What these are

Heavy Snow: Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.
Blizzard: Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 35 mph or more with falling or blowing snow that cuts visibility below a quarter mile for three hours or longer.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Washington in 2008 Every state in 2008 This day in weather history Warnings in Washington, February 2008

Sources

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: 111149, 79678, 79679, 79680, 79673, 79681.