A preceding cold arctic air mass combined with a moist Pacific storm resulted in widespread heavy snow for Northwest Oregon including the coast and the Willamette Valley. Warmer air quickly moved in from the south mid-morning and the snow changed to freezing rain.
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 episode as NWS PQR wrote it up.
A preceding cold arctic air mass combined with a moist Pacific storm resulted in widespread heavy snow for Northwest Oregon including the coast and the Willamette Valley. Warmer air quickly moved in from the south mid-morning and the snow changed to freezing rain. East winds through the Columbia River Gorge maintained colder air to the north where the precipitation fell mainly as snow.
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 Portland, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 6, 3:27 AM PST, 1 hour 33 minutes earlier.
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
327 AM PST THU FEB 6 2014
.SYNOPSIS...A SNOWY DAY IS IN THE MAKING THIS MORNING...AS LOW
PRESSURE OFF THE COAST SPREADS MOISTURE OVER THE COLD ARCTIC AIR MASS
IN PLACE ACROSS THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST. NORTHWEST OREGON AND EXTREME
SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON WILL BE THE ZONE WHERE THESE TWO AIR MASSES
MEET...PRODUCING INCREASING PRECIPITATION IN THE FORM OF SNOW TODAY
INTO THIS EVENING. SIGNIFICANT SNOW ACCUMULATIONS ARE LIKELY FOR MOST
OF THE FORECAST AREA LATER TODAY THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING. A SIMILAR
SETUP WILL KEEP A DECENT CHANCE OF SNOW AT TIMES THROUGH THE
WEEKEND...AS THE COLD AIR NEVER REALLY LEAVES THE AREA. FINALLY A
MORE ORGANIZED SYSTEM WILL WARM US UP EARLY NEXT WEEK...BUT THERE MAY
BE A MESSY TRANSITION ANYTIME BETWEEN SUNDAY AND TUESDAY. THE
COLUMBIA GORGE WILL BE THE LAST TO WARM UP...BUT BY MIDWEEK IT
APPEARS THE WHOLE FORECAST AREA WILL BE BACK TO MILDER TEMPERATURES
WITH PERIODS OF RAIN FOR THE REST OF THE WEEK.
&&
.SHORT TERM...TODAY THROUGH SUNDAY...WINTER STORM WARNINGS HAVE BEEN
HOISTED ACROSS MUCH OF NORTHWEST OREGON THIS MORNING...FOR WHAT IS
SHAPING UP TO BE THE MOST SIGNIFICANT WIDESPREAD SNOW EVENT FOR THE
NORTHERN AND CENTRAL WILLAMETTE VALLEY SINCE DECEMBER 2009. OF COURSE
THE WILLAMETTE VALLEY ALBANY SOUTHWARD HAVE ALREADY HAD THEIR FIRST
SNOWSTORM OF THIS SEASON BACK IN DECEMBER 2013.
CONDITIONS WILL GRADUALLY DETERIORATE AS THE DAY PROGRESSES. NWS
DUAL-POL DOPPLER RADAR IS ALREADY BEGINNING TO PICK UP ON SOME LIGHT
PRECIPITATION ECHOES...IN THE FORM OF SNOW...MOVING ONSHORE INTO LANE
AND LINCOLN COUNTIES. ODOT WEBCAMS AROUND COTTAGE GROVE INDEED SHOW A
COATING OF FRESH SNOW. AS WAS SOMEWHAT EXPECTED...THESE ECHOES ARE
SHOWING A BIT OF A BANDED SIGNATURE...SOMEWHAT ALIGNED JUST TO THE
NORTH OF THE GREATEST AREA OF 850-700 MB FRONTOGENESIS BETWEEN THE
ARCTIC AIR MASS TO THE NE AND THE MILDER PACIFIC AIR MASS TO THE
SOUTHWEST. ALREADY THE NAM/RAP SEEM TO BE TOO FAR SOUTH WITH THIS
AREA OF MAX FGEN...AND THE 00Z/06Z GFS ANALYSES ARE CLOSER TO WHAT
APPEARS TO BE REALITY. THEREFORE WE ARE FAVORING THE LATEST GFS
RUNS...AND EVEN MORESO THE 00Z ECMWF WHICH HAS BEEN FAIRLY ROCK SOLID
WITH THE EVOLUTION OF THIS PATTERN. THE 00Z ECMWF IS WHAT GAVE US THE
CONFIDENCE TO GO OUT WITH OUR SUITE OF WARNINGS SHORTLY BEFORE 11 PM
WED EVENING.
LOOKING AT WATER VAPOR AND INFRARED IMAGERY...IT IS BECOMING APPARENT
THAT ONE SHORTWAVE IS BEGINNING TO DETACH FROM ITS PARENT LOW OUT BY
46N/130W. THIS SECONDARY WAVE IS TOUGH TO PICK OUT...BUT IT APPEARS
TO BE IN THE THICKER CLOUDS ABOUT 100 MILES WEST OF TILLAMOOK. THIS
SYSTEM IS HEADING DUE EAST...WHICH ALSO INCREASES THE CONFIDENCE
LEVEL THAT SNOW WILL INCREASE AS THE DAY PROGRESSES. INITIALLY SNOW
MAY BE SLOW TO START AS THE AIR MASS IS STARTING OFF VERY DRY. BUT
LOW-LEVEL FRONTOGENESIS WILL ONLY INCREASE ACROSS NW OREGON AS THIS
WAVE APPROACHES THE COLUMBIA GORGE...WHERE THE FREEZER DOOR REMAINS
OPEN SO TO SPEAK...AND PLENTY OF ARCTIC AIR CONTINUES TO SPILL
WESTWARD INTO THE WILLAMETTE VALLEY. THE SQUEEZE PLAY BETWEEN THESE
TWO FEATURES WILL PROBABLY LEAD TO AN PERSISTENT AND INTENSIFYING
BAND OF SNOW ACROSS A GOOD PORTION OF THE WILLAMETTE VALLEY.
ONE IMPORTANT ITEM TO NOTE. THIS SITUATION WILL LIKELY TAKE A FEW
HOURS TO EVOLVE. JUST BECAUSE IT IS NOT SNOWING WHEN IT IS TIME TO
TAKE THE KIDS TO SCHOOL OR LEAVE FOR WORK DOES NOT MEAN THAT IT WILL
NOT SNOW LATER IN THE DAY. IN FACT THE STEADIEST SNOW IS NOT EXPECTED
TO BEGIN UNTIL MIDDAY...INCREASING BEFORE THE PEAK RIGHT AROUND WHAT
WOULD BE THE THURSDAY EVENING COMMUTE.
OVERALL SNOW ACCUMULATIONS THROUGH FRI MORNING WILL PROBABLY BE IN
THE 3-7 INCH RANGE FOR MOST SPOTS...PERHAPS A BIT MORE IN THE HIGHER
TERRAIN. THE 00Z/06Z GFS...00Z ECMWF...AND 00Z GEM ARE ALL IN
AGREEMENT WITH THIS...ALONG WITH MOST OF THE ECMWF ENSEMBLES.
SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON WILL PROBABLY BE ON THE FRINGE...AND MAY SEE
LIGHTER ACCUMULATIONS...BUT WE FIGURE THERE WILL BE ENOUGH TO INCLUDE
THE LOWER COLUMBIA IN A WINTER WX ADVISORY.
IN THE GORGE...STRONG WINDS WILL PERSIST THROUGH THE DAY AS SNOW
INCREASES. WITH 3-7 INCHES OF SNOW EXPECTED LATER TODAY INTO THIS
EVENING ALONG WITH WINDS GUSTING 50-65 MPH...VISIBILITY WILL BE
REDUCED TO ZERO AT TIMES DUE TO SNOW AND BLOWING SNOW. SINCE THIS IS
A MAJOR TRAVEL CORRIDOR WITH I-84 AND WA-14...WE DECIDED TO ISSUE A
BLIZZARD WARNING FOR THE WESTERN GORGE TO HIGHLIGHT THIS THREAT.
FRIDAY WILL NOT BE THE END OF THE SNOW THREAT AS THIS SYSTEM DOES
LITTLE TO NOTHING TOWARD SCOURING OUT THE EASTSIDE COLD POOL. MODELS
SHOW GOOD AGREEMENT THAT AN ELONGATED UPPER LOW OFF VANCOUVER ISLAND
AND THE OLYMPIC PENINSULA WILL KEEP SENDING WEAKENING SYSTEMS AT US
FROM THE W-SW...WHILE THE COLD POOL EAST OF THE CASCADES ONLY SLOWLY
WANES. AS A RESULT...ANOTHER SYSTEM COULD SPREAD MORE SNOW INTO THE
WILLAMETTE VALLEY FRIDAY...THEN ANOTHER SATURDAY...WITH MODERATION
ONLY LIKELY IF ONE OF THESE SYSTEMS REMAINS STRONG WHILE MOVING
ONSHORE. THIS IS UNLIKELY WITH THE MAIN PACIFIC JET FOCUSED ON
BRINGING MUCH-NEEDED RAINFALL TO NORTHERN CALIFORNIA. THE TIMING OF
EACH OF THESE WAVES IS FAIRLY UNCERTAIN...BUT THERE IS A PRETTY GOOD
CHANCE TODAYS SYSTEM WILL NOT BE THE ONLY ONE TO HAVE A WIDESPREAD
SNOW IMPACT ON NORTHWEST OREGON IN THE COMING DAYS. TEMPS REMAIN WELL
BELOW NORMAL THROUGH SUNDAY...IT MAY TAKE UNTIL MONDAY OR TUESDAY FOR
TEMPS TO START TO REBOUND CLOSER TO NORMAL. WEAGLE
.LONG TERM...LATE SUNDAY THROUGH THURSDAY...AFTER MUCH EXCITEMENT
SUNDAY MORNING WITH FREEZING RAIN/SNOW/RAIN MIX EXPECTED FOR
LOCATIONS NORTH OF EUGENE...A MORE MILD AIRMASS SPREADS ACROSS THE
FORECAST AREA BY SUNDAY NIGHT. MODELS MAINTAIN AN EASTERLY GRADIENT
THROUGH THE COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE SUNDAY NIGHT...ALBEIT A MUCH WEAKER
GRADIENT BUT WILL STILL PUMP COLDER AIR INTO THE GORGE AND UPPER
HOOD RIVER VALLEY. THE THREAT FOR FREEZING RAIN STILL LOOKS GOOD
THROUGH EARLY MONDAY MORNING IN THE GORGE. THE NEXT FRONTAL SYSTEM
PUSHES ONSHORE MIDDAY MONDAY...FINALLY WEAKENING THE EASTERLY
GRADIENT THROUGH THE GORGE AND BRINGING ABOVE FREEZING TEMPERATURES
ACROSS THE FORECAST AREA. /27
AFTER THIS MESSY AND DIFFICULT TRANSITION OVER THE WEEKEND ALL THE
MODELS INDICATE A MAJOR PATTERN SHIFT TOWARD A WET AND PROGRESSIVE
WESTERLY JET STREAM TUESDAY THROUGH THE END OF NEXT WEEK.
&&
.AVIATION...VFR CONDITIONS WITH MOD TO STRONG OFFSHORE FLOW THIS
AM. LOW PRES WELL OFFSHORE WILL INTO THE REGION THIS AM...WITH
AREAS OF MVFR CIGS AND LIGHT SNOW GRADUALLY INCREASING THROUGH
18Z. SNOW WILL INCREASE BETWEEN 18Z AND 22Z. FLIGHT CONDITIONS
WILL DETERIORATE QUICKLY AT THAT TIME...WITH TRANSITION TO IFR
CIGS AND IFR TO MVFR IN SNOW. MTNS AND TERRAIN BECOMING OBSCURED
IN CLOUDS AND SNOW THIS AM.
KPDX AND APPROACHES...VFR THIS AM...BUT WILL HAVE A FEW FLURRIES
IN AREA TIL 16Z. FROM 16Z TO 20Z...WILL SEE OCCASIONAL LIGHT SNOW
WITH OCCASIONAL MVFR INCREASING...BUT STEADY ACCUMULATING SNOW
ARRIVES AFTER 20Z WITH IFR. MOD EAST WINDS RELAX A BIT AFTER
00Z...BUT IFR WITH LIGHT SNOW CONTS THROUGH 08Z. ROCKEY.
&&
.MARINE...OFFSHORE FLOW CONTINUES...BUT WILL GRADUALLY RELAX AS
LOW PRES MOVES ACROSS THE REGION LATER TODAY. HOWEVER...OFFSHORE
WINDS WILL INCREASE AGAIN THIS WEEKEND AS STRONG LOW APPROACHES
FROM THE SW. WINDS SHOULD PUSH 20 TO 25 KT BY LATE FRI AND AGAIN
LATE SAT AS TWO SEPARATE LOW PRES SYSTEMS DEVELOP AND PUSH
NORTHEASTWARD INTO THE PAC NW.
SEAS WILL REMAIN IN THE 5 TO 7 FT RANGE THROUGH THE WEEKEND. MAY
SEE BIT MORE IN WAY OF SWELL EARLY TO MID NEXT WEEK. ROCKEY.
&&
.PQR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
OR...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM 10 AM TODAY TO 4 AM FRI FOR...
LOWER COLUMBIA.
UPPER HOOD RIVER VALLEY.
BLIZZARD WARNING FROM 10 AM TODAY TO 4 AM FRI FOR...
WESTERN COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE.
WINTER STORM WARNING FROM 10 AM TODAY TO 4 AM FRI FOR...
NORTH WILLAMETTE VALLEY...INCLUDING PORTLAND METRO
CENTRAL WILLAMETTE VALLEY...INCLUDING SALEM AREA
CENTRAL COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE
COAST RANGE OF NORTHWEST OREGON
FOOTHILLS OF THE NORTHERN OREGON CASCADES.
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY UNTIL 4 AM FRI FOR...
CASCADES IN LANE COUNTY
NORTHERN OREGON CASCADES.
WIND CHILL WARNING UNTIL 6 PM TODAY FOR...
NORTHERN OREGON CASCADES.
WINTER STORM WARNING UNTIL 4 AM FRIDAY FOR...
CASCADE FOOTHILLS IN LANE COUNTY
CENTRAL COAST RANGE OF WESTERN OREGON
SOUTH WILLAMETTE VALLEY...INCLUDING EUGENE.
WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 10 PM TODAY FOR...
GREATER PORTLAND METRO AREA.
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY 7 AM THROUGH THIS EVENING FOR...
NORTH OREGON COAST
CENTRAL OREGON COAST
WA...WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY FROM 10 AM TODAY TO 4 AM FRI FOR...
I-5 CORRIDOR IN COWLITZ COUNTY
SOUTH WASHINGTON CASCADE FOOTHILLS.
BLIZZARD WARNING FROM 10 AM TODAY TO 4 AM FRI FOR...
WESTERN COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE.
WINTER STORM WARNING FROM 10 AM TODAY TO 4 AM FRI FOR...
CENTRAL COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE
CLARK COUNTY...INCLUDING GREATER VANCOUVER AREA.
WIND CHILL WARNING UNTIL 6 PM TODAY FOR...
SOUTH WASHINGTON CASCADES.
WIND ADVISORY UNTIL 10 PM TODAY FOR...
GREATER VANCOUVER AREA.
PZ...SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY FOR WINDS UNTIL 3 PM TODAY FOR
ALL COASTAL WATERS.
&&
MORE WEATHER INFORMATION ONLINE AT..
HTTP://WEATHER.GOV/PORTLAND
INTERACT WITH US VIA SOCIAL MEDIA
WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/US.NATIONALWEATHERSERVICE.PORTLAND.GOV
WWW.TWITTER.COM/NWSPORTLAND
THIS DISCUSSION IS FOR NORTHWEST OREGON AND SOUTHWEST WASHINGTON FROM
THE CASCADE CREST TO 60 NAUTICAL MILES OFFSHORE. THE AREA IS COMMONLY
REFERRED TO AS THE FORECAST AREA.12 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Snow in the morning along the Central Oregon coast changed into freezing rain in the afternoon before ending with 2 to 4 inch snow accumulations. The greatest snowfall reported was 4 inches in Waldport. There was 2 inches of snow in Newport followed with a quarter of an inch of ice.
Snow came fast and furious into the South Willamette Valley and continued heavy at times throughout the day. Most locations saw 5 to 10 inches of snow. The highest measured snow amounts follow. Two trained spotters reported 11.5 inches of snow at Corvallis and 9.3 inches of snow at Philomath. A public report provided 9 inches in Albany, and an amateur HAM radio operator relayed 7 inches of snow in Halsey.
Snow began early in the morning for the Central Oregon coast Range then changed to freezing rain later in the morning and rain in the afternoon. There was a report by the public of 6 inches of snow in Alsea.
The Central Willamette Valley was in between two heavier bands of snow to their north and to their south and generally had less snow than other areas in NW Oregon. However, a couple of locations still met the Winter Weather Warning criteria including 5 inches of snow 8 miles northwest of Newberg and 4 inches at Monmouth.
A 30-mile wide band of heavy snow set up along the Oregon coast in the morning on the 6th, and resulted in 4 to 8 inches of snow from Tillamook to Manzanita. The heaviest snowfall reports reported was 8 inches from a NWS spotter in Manzanita and 7 inches from a public report at Rockaway Beach.
Heavy snow on the Northern Oregon Coast range with the greatest amount of 13 inches 6 miles northwest of Vernonia. That snow was reported by a Ham operator. There were two snow reports from ODOT stations with 10 inches of snow (Wilson River Summit and Sunset Summit).
There were no snow observations from within this zone, but heavy snow in near by Detroit (1500 feet elevation) confirms there was heavy snow in the Oregon Cascade Foothills. A trained spotter reported 14 inches of snow in Detroit and ODOT reported 9 inches of snow. Therefore, it is estimated that there was 7 to 15 inches of snow in the foothills.
Light snow started early in the morning then increased during the afternoon resulting in a winter weather advisory being upgraded to a warning. A couple more noteworthy reports include one from the general public of 8.5 inches in Scappoose, and an ODOT report of 7 inches of snow in Clatskanie.
The Hood River County Emergency Manager reported 10 inches of snow in Hood River. The Oregon Department of Transportation reported 9 inches in Hood River and 8 inches in Cascade Locks.
There were two reports of heavy snow in Parkdale. One from the Hood River County Emergency Manager who reported 14 inches of snow, and the other from the Oregon Department of Transportation who reported 10 inches.
Snowfall totals varied across the Portland metro area ranging from 2 to 9 inches with the highest amounts near Hillsboro and Scappoose. A report from the general public of 8.5 inches of snow for Scappoose. There were two HAM Amateur radio reports of 6 inches of snow for Hillsboro and Gresham. Portland received 3 to 4 inches of snow which was reported from various sources including NWS employees, Trained spotters and the NWS office.
Spotter reports indicated 2 to 4 inches of snow reported followed with 0.25 inch of ice.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Oregon in 2014Every state in 2014This day in weather historyWarnings in Oregon, February 2014
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: 506480, 506569, 506483, 506487, 506479, 506482, 506570, 506485, 506571, 506574, 506486, 507464.