A Pacific system spread wintry precipitation across the Pacific Northwest.
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 episode as NWS PDT wrote it up.
A Pacific system spread wintry precipitation across the Pacific Northwest.
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 Feb 3, 8:05 PM PST, 1 hour 25 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Pendleton OR
805 PM PST Fri Feb 3 2017
.UPDATE...An area of precipitation which contains embedded heavy
showers of freezing rain...sleet or snow is moving across northeast
Oregon and SE Washington at this time. This area of precipitation is
moving quite fast so accumulations will not add up to much but there
will be enough ice to still make roadways slick. The remainder of
the precipitation with the current weather system is over the
Cascades westward and not making much progress eastward of the
Cascade range. May be able to let some of the advisories or warnings
be cancelled this evening but will wait another hour or two before
making that decision. Temperatures are rising above freezing from
the Blue Mountains and Central Oregon southward with a southerly
flow. North of that line cold air remains trapped at the surface up
to about 3500 feet MSL. This cold air will slowly erode overnight and
then especially on Saturday as mixing increases and winds pickup
behind this weather system. After that weather conditions will be
more seasonal for February over the CWA. The areas which will hold
on the cold air the longest will be the east slopes of the
Washington Cascades and the adjacent Yakima and Kittitas Valleys.
Forecast update will be made a little later on. 88
&&
.AVIATION...06Z TAFs...Periods of MVFR or IFR conditions can be
expected at all sites overnight due to mist...low cigs or poor
visibility in showers of mixed precipitation. However will see a
slow improvement overnight and on Saturday as increased mixing takes
place and temperatures warm up. Winds will be light overnight but
will increase at KRDM and KBDN...and then slowly increase from south
to north on Saturday behind the current weather system. 88
&&
.PREV DISCUSSION... /issued 310 PM PST Fri Feb 3 2017/
SHORT TERM...Tonight through Saturday Night...A messy and
complex scenario is unfolding tonight as an offshore low moves
ashore this evening and weakens into an open wave. Warmer air is
moving in from the south and many locations have warmed into the 40s
in Central Oregon and the Oregon mountains. Further north most
locations are still in the 20s and the difficult question is just
how fast the cold air will get mixed out. For most locations in the
Blue Mountains and Central Oregon southward, have decided that
lingering cold pockets will warm this evening and overnight. Further
north, believe it happen late tonight or tomorrow morning. As
precipitation moves in tonight, mainly rain is expected in the south
while a wintry mix of snow, freezing rain and sleet is expected in
the north. Thus far the current storm has been underperforming on
precipitation amounts and models indicate that lighter amounts will
continue, so have cut back on precipitation amounts. Both snow and
freezing rain will be less than previously expected. Am planning to
replace current Winter Storm Warnings with Winter Weather Advisories
shortly. The exception is the East Slopes of The Washington Cascades
which will see the heaviest precipitation as the low slides by on
its way north. Winds remain strong in the Southern Grande Ronde
Valley and will keep the current wind advisory there. Have kept
areas of blowing snow in the Grande Ronde valley through Saturday
though expect that warming temperatures will allow snow to
melt/consolidate and reduce the blowing snow problem. Tomorrow
morning will see a chance of rain and snow in the mountains and a
chance of a wintry mix continuing in the Columbia Basin and adjacent
valleys. Warming will allow the switch over to a chance of rain in
the afternoon with snow above 5000 feet. Saturday night will see a
continued moist westerly flow and a chance of rain with snow levels
dropping to 3500 to 4000 feet late Saturday night. Lows tonight will
be in the 20s in the north and in the 30s in the mountains and
south. Saturday will be in the mid 30s to mid 40s. Saturday night
will be in the upper 20s to mid 30s. Perry
LONG TERM...Sunday through Tuesday. An upper level trough and
associated surface low and frontal boundary will move across the
region Sunday into Monday. This will bring periods of snow and lower
elevation rain. A westerly flow aloft Tuesday with mostly cloudy
skies and showers. Temperatures will remain mild with highs in the
mid 30s to mid 40s. Will likely have some breezy southwest winds as
the low moves through. 94
Wednesday through Friday. A series of low pressure systems
should move across the two state area through the period.
The first low pressure system and its associated warm front will
move through the area on Wednesday with another storm system
expected on Thursday and a third on Friday. A mixture of snow and
rain is likely on Wednesday and snow levels should increase
Wednesday night turning the snow to mainly rain showers except for
the higher mountain locations. Elsewhere a wedge of subfreezing cold
air may linger over the Yakima/Kittitas valley before turning to all
liquid on Thursday. Breezy south winds are possible on Thursday with
warming temps. By Friday more showers and cooler air will push into
the region that will lower snow levels.
&&
.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
PDT 29 45 36 45 / 80 40 40 40
ALW 29 45 37 46 / 90 80 50 50
PSC 27 39 35 43 / 70 30 30 50
YKM 26 38 31 39 / 60 30 30 60
HRI 28 40 34 44 / 70 30 30 40
ELN 26 37 28 36 / 70 40 40 60
RDM 31 48 33 46 / 70 40 30 40
LGD 37 43 35 42 / 80 50 50 40
GCD 39 46 32 42 / 70 30 40 30
DLS 28 41 35 41 / 80 60 60 70
&&
.PDT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
OR...Winter Weather Advisory until 10 AM PST Saturday for ORZ041-044-
507-508-510.
Winter Weather Advisory until 7 AM PST Saturday for ORZ049-503.
Winter Weather Advisory until 1 PM PST Saturday for ORZ050-502.
Winter Weather Advisory until 4 AM PST Saturday for ORZ509.
WA...Winter Weather Advisory until 10 AM PST Saturday for WAZ024-
026>029-521.
Winter Weather Advisory until 1 PM PST Saturday for WAZ030.
Winter Storm Warning until 4 PM PST Saturday for WAZ520.
&&
88/94/88The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 ice storm. Local standard time, as filed.
Ice accumulation of 0.25 inches at Pendleton, in Umatilla county.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Oregon in 2017Every state in 2017This day in weather historyWarnings in Oregon, February 2017
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: 682816.