Heavy Snow in Washington, January 8 to 9, 2011

Name: Heavy Snow in Washington, January 8 to 9, 2011
Start: 2011-01-08T21:00
End: 2011-01-09T18:00
Location: Washington

January 8 to 9, 2011 · NWS PDT · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

An upper level low in Canada moved southeast and brought cold air and heavy snow to the East Slopes of the Cascades. 5), 1 miles west of Cle Elum (8), Easton (14), and 6 miles east of Easton (16).

Where it happened

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.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 2

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 PDT wrote it up.

An upper level low in Canada moved southeast and brought cold air and heavy snow to the East Slopes of the Cascades. Snowfall amounts reported in inches included 7 miles north northwest of Easton (8), Easton (6.5), 1 miles west of Cle Elum (8), Easton (14), and 6 miles east of Easton (16).

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 Pendleton, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 8, 8:10 PM PST, 50 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 8, 8:10 PM PST, 50 minutes before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
810 PM PST SAT JAN 8 2011

.UPDATE...SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS ON RADAR ALONG THE BLUE MOUNTAINS
AND WALLOWA COUNTY. SATELLITE INDICATES UNSTABLE ATMOSPHERE OVER
THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST. WATER VAPOR SATELLITE SHOWS WAVE DIGGING
INTO SOUTHEAST OREGON/SOUTHWESTERN IDAHO. EXPECT SCATTERED SHOWERS
TO INCREASE SUNDAY AS ANOTHER WAVE MOVES INTO SOUTHEAST OREGON
WITH UPSLOPE SHOWERS INTO THE BLUE MOUNTAINS. FORECAST ON TRACK
FOR ADVISORIES IN THE MORNING. COONFIELD

&&

.PREV DISCUSSION... /ISSUED 318 PM PST SAT JAN 8 2011/

SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH TUESDAY.  A BROAD UPPER LEVEL TROUGH
IS CURRENTLY OVER WESTERN CANADA AND THE PACIFIC NW...AND A COLDER
MORE UNSTABLE AIR MASS IS PRESENT OVER THE FORECAST AREA.  THERE ARE
A FEW WEAK EMBEDDED DISTURBANCES AND COLD AIR CUMULUS CLOUDS THAT
COULD BRING ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS TONIGHT.  THE BEST
CHANCE OF SNOW SHOWERS WILL BE OVER THE BLUE MOUNTAINS IN A NW FLOW
ALOFT.  MODELS ARE SHOWING QPF AMOUNTS UP TO 0.25 OF AN INCH WHICH
IS LIKELY ASSOCIATED WITH ENHANCED PRECIPITATION ON THE LEFT EXIT
REGION OF THE JET.  THEREFORE...WILL HAVE ACCUMULATIONS OF AROUND
2-3 INCHES OVER THE BLUES FOR TONIGHT'S FORECAST.

A STRONGER WAVE WILL SWING ACROSS WASHINGTON AND NORTHERN OREGON ON
SUNDAY AND SUNDAY NIGHT.  THIS WAVE HAS AN ASSOCIATED SURFACE COLD
FRONT THAT WILL GRADUALLY SAG SOUTHWARD ACROSS THE REGION AND REMAIN
STATIONARY JUST SOUTH OF THE WA/OR BORDER.  ALTHOUGH THERE IS NOT
SIGNIFICANT MOISTURE ASSOCIATED WITH IT...THE SLOW MOVEMENT OF THE
FRONT WILL LEAD TO A STEADY DURATION OF LIGHT SNOW SUNDAY MORNING
THROUGH MONDAY MORNING.  THE AMOUNTS WILL LIKELY REACH ADVISORY
CRITERIA (I.E. 2-4 INCHES) IN THE OREGON PORTION OF THE LOWER
COLUMBIA BASIN AND BLUE MTN FOOTHILLS SOUTH OF HERMISTON AND
PENDLETON.  THE SOUTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS WILL LIKELY GET HIT THE
HARDEST AND BELIEVE 24-HR ACCUMULATIONS OF 4-7 INCHES CAN BE
EXPECTED.  WILL ALSO ISSUE AN ADVISORY FOR THE JOHN DAY BASIN WHERE
2-4 INCHES ARE EXPECTED. THE FRONT WEAKENS AND SHEARS APART AS A
DRIER NORTHERLY FLOW INCREASES ACROSS THE AREA MONDAY MORNING.  THE
EASTERN MOUNTAINS WILL SEE LIGHT OROGRAPHIC SNOW SHOWERS MONDAY
AFTERNOON AND MONDAY EVENING WHILE THE REMAINDER OF THE REGION WILL
BE DRY.  A DRY FORECAST IS IN STORE FOR THE ENTIRE AREA TUESDAY
BEFORE THE NEXT SYSTEM ARRIVES TUESDAY NIGHT AND WEDNESDAY.  JOHNSON

LONG TERM...TUESDAY NIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY...NO MAJOR CHANGES TO
THE EXTENDED PERIOD. MODELS CONTINUE TO SHOW A WESTERLY FLOW
DEVELOPING WHICH WILL BRING SEVERAL FAST MOVING WEATHER SYSTEMS
THROUGH THE REGION OVER THE ENTIRE EXTENDED PERIOD. QUESTIONS DO
REMAIN AS TO LOCATION OF COLD AIR DURING THIS PROLONGED EVENT. GFS
CONTINUES TO INDICATE THAT THE MEAN SEA LEVEL PRESSURE PATTERN WOULD
FAVOR KEEPING COLD AIR TRAPPED IN THE LOWER ELEVATIONS AROUND THE
COLUMBIA BASIN WITH SOME WARMING ACROSS THE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE
FORECAST AREA. THIS PATTERN WOULD TEND TO FAVOR A SNOW EVENT ACROSS
SOUTHERN WASHINGTON...A MIXED PRECIPITATION EVENT FOR LOWER
ELEVATIONS OF NORTH OREGON AND A MIX OF RAIN AND SNOW FOR THE
SOUTHERN PORTION OF THE FORECAST AREA AND MOUNTAINS. HOWEVER...THE
ECMWF MODEL TRACKS THE SURFACE LOW FURTHER NORTH OVER WASHINGTON
WHICH WOULD ALLOW MORE MIXING OUT OF THE COLD AIR IN THE COLUMBIA
BASIN MEANING LESS SNOW AND MORE LIQUID PRECIPITATION. THESE MODEL
DIFFERENCES HAVE PERSISTED IN THE MODELS THE PAST COUPLE OF DAYS SO
UNTIL MODELS COME MORE INTO LINE WITH ONE ANOTHER WILL CONTINUE TO
FAVOR THE GFS MODEL AND COLDER TEMPERATURES. SO...POTENTIAL STILL
REMAINS THAT WE COULD HAVE A MAJOR WINTER STORM EVENT AROUND MID
WEEK SO CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE LATEST FORECAST FOR MORE DETAILS AS
THE EVENT APPROACHES.

AVIATION...00Z TAF PACKAGE. PREVAILING VFR/MVFR CONDITIONS EXPECTED
THROUGH THE FOLLOWING 24 HOURS. UNSTABLE NORTHWEST FLOW WILL RESULT
IN SOME INSTABILITY SHOWERS MAINLY IMPACTING KPDT AND KALW WITH
POTENTIAL MVFR CIGS BANKED UP AGAINST THE BLUE MOUNTAINS THROUGH
EARLY SUNDAY. REMAINING TAF LOCATIONS WILL LIKELY STAY VFR WITH
OVERALL LIGHT WINDS.

&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
PDT  25  31  17  25 /  40  70  60  50
ALW  27  33  19  27 /  40  70  50  30
PSC  25  34  19  27 /  20  30  20  10
YKM  21  32  17  27 /  20  30  30  20
HRI  26  34  19  28 /  20  60  60  50
ELN  19  28  12  23 /  30  50  40  20
RDM  17  32  13  29 /  20  40  30  20
LGD  19  29  14  26 /  50  80  70  50
GCD  20  30  17  28 /  40  70  50  40
DLS  28  39  25  34 /  30  50  40  20

&&

.PDT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
OR...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM 7 AM SUNDAY TO 10 AM PST MONDAY
     ORZ044-507.

     WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM 7 AM SUNDAY TO 10 AM PST MONDAY
     ORZ503.

     WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM 7 AM SUNDAY TO 10 AM PST MONDAY
     ORZ505-508.

WA...NONE.
&&

THREAT INDEX
SUNDAY : YELLOW
MONDAY : GREEN
TUESDAY : GREEN

GREEN: NONE OR LIMITED NEED FOR WATCHES, WARNINGS, OR ADVISORIES.
YELLOW: A FEW WATCHES, WARNINGS, OR ADVISORIES POSSIBLE OR IN EFFECT.
RED: NUMEROUS WATCHES, WARNINGS, OR ADVISORIES POSSIBLE OR IN EFFECT.

FOR ADDITIONAL WEATHER INFORMATION, CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT...
WWW.WEATHER.GOV/PENDLETON

76/76/76

Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 8, 2:50 PM PST, 6 hours 10 minutes before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
250 PM PST SAT JAN 8 2011

UPDATED FOR WINTER WEATHER ADVISORIES

ORZ041-042-044-049-050-502-503-505>509-WAZ024-026>030-520-521-
091415-
EASTERN COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE OF OREGON-NORTH CENTRAL OREGON-
LOWER COLUMBIA BASIN OF OREGON-GRANDE RONDE VALLEY-WALLOWA COUNTY-
NORTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON-
SOUTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON-JOHN DAY BASIN-OCHOCO-
JOHN DAY HIGHLANDS-
FOOTHILLS OF THE NORTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON-
FOOTHILLS OF THE SOUTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON-
EAST SLOPES OF THE OREGON CASCADES-
EASTERN COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE OF WASHINGTON-KITTITAS VALLEY-
YAKIMA VALLEY-LOWER COLUMBIA BASIN OF WASHINGTON-
FOOTHILLS OF THE BLUE MOUNTAINS OF WASHINGTON-
NORTHWEST BLUE MOUNTAINS OF WASHINGTON-
EAST SLOPES OF THE WASHINGTON CASCADES-SIMCOE HIGHLANDS-
250 PM PST SAT JAN 8 2011

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST OREGON
AS WELL AS SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT

SNOW
     NORTHWEST BLUE MOUNTAINS OF WASHINGTON, NORTHERN BLUE
     MOUNTAINS OF OREGON

ISOLATED TO SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS WILL DEVELOP ACROSS THE FORECAST
AREA TONIGHT. THE BLUE MOUNTAINS WILL LIKELY SEE THE HEAVIEST
ACCUMULATIONS WHERE 2-3 INCHES ARE EXPECTED.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...SUNDAY THROUGH FRIDAY

SNOW SUNDAY THROUGH MONDAY
     LOWER COLUMBIA BASIN OF OREGON, FOOTHILLS OF THE NORTHERN BLUE
     MOUNTAINS OF OREGON, SOUTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON,
     FOOTHILLS OF THE SOUTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON, JOHN DAY
     BASIN

WINTER MIX WEDNESDAY THROUGH THURSDAY
     SIMCOE HIGHLANDS, EASTERN COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE OF WASHINGTON,
     EASTERN COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE OF OREGON, NORTH CENTRAL OREGON,
     EAST SLOPES OF THE OREGON CASCADES, LOWER COLUMBIA BASIN OF
     OREGON, FOOTHILLS OF THE NORTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON,
     SOUTHERN BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON, FOOTHILLS OF THE SOUTHERN
     BLUE MOUNTAINS OF OREGON, JOHN DAY BASIN, OCHOCO-JOHN DAY
     HIGHLANDS

SNOW WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY
     ALL AREAS

A STATIONARY FRONT WILL BRING A LONG DURATION OF LIGHT TO MODERATE
SNOW TO NORTHEAST OREGON SUNDAY AND SUNDAY NIGHT. THE AREAS LISTED
ARE UNDER A WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FOR SNOW IN EFFECT FROM 7 AM PST
SUNDAY THROUGH 10 AM PST MONDAY.  FOR DETAILS...PDXWSWPDT.

A MUCH STRONGER AND WETTER WEATHER SYSTEM WILL MOVE INTO THE REGION
BEGINNING WEDNESDAY WHICH WILL BE FOLLOWED BY ADDITIONAL PACIFIC
WEATHER SYSTEMS FOR THURSDAY THROUGH THE END OF THE WEEK. EACH OF
THESE SYSTEMS HAS A POTENTIAL TO BRING MODERATE TO HEAVY SNOW...OR
MIXED SNOW AND RAIN IN THE LOWER ELEVATIONS...TO THE FORECAST
AREA...AND ALL SNOW TO THE MOUNTAINS. THE MOSTLY LIKELY AREAS TO
RECEIVE HEAVY SNOW WILL BE IN THE BLUE MOUNTAINS...ESPECIALLY OVER
THE THE NORTHERN AND WESTERN FACING SLOPES WHERE UP SLOPE
PRECIPITATION ENHANCEMENT WILL BE GREATEST. IN ADDITION MUCH COLDER
AIR WILL INVADE MAINLY THE NORTHERN HALF OF THE FORECAST AREA
THROUGH THE PERIOD WITH BELOW NORMAL TEMPERATURES UNDER A MODIFIED
ARCTIC AIR MASS. DETAILS ON THE UPCOMING EVENT CAN BE FOUND IN THE
PRODUCT...PDXSPSPDT.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE LIKELY WEDNESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY.

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.

GRAPHICAL FORECASTS OF WEATHER HAZARDS OUT TO SEVEN DAYS
ARE DISPLAYED ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB AT:

WWW.WRH.NOAA.GOV/PDT/CURRENTHAZARDS/HWO.HTML

ALL LETTERS IN THE ABOVE URL ARE LOWER CASE.

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, East Slopes of the Washington Cascades

When: January 8, 9:00 PM PST to January 9, 1:00 PM PST
Where: East Slopes of the Washington Cascades forecast zone
Reported by: Trained Spotter

Heavy Snow, Northwest Blue Mountains

When: January 8, 11:00 PM PST to January 9, 6:00 PM PST
Where: Northwest Blue Mountains forecast zone
Reported by: Public
Coordinates: 46.264, -118.193 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

What these are

Heavy Snow: Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Washington in 2011 Every state in 2011 This day in weather history Warnings in Washington, January 2011

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: 268158, 268159.