Fronts associated with a low pressure system passing north into the Olympic Peninsula brought heavy snow and ice to the Columbia Gorge.
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.
Fronts associated with a low pressure system passing north into the Olympic Peninsula brought heavy snow and ice to the Columbia Gorge.
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 3, 8:47 AM PST, 1 hour 13 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Portland OR
847 AM PST Fri Feb 3 2017
.SYNOPSIS...Freezing rain is impacting areas of Northwest Oregon and
Southwest Washington this morning for a dangerous morning commute.
The freezing rain will retreat to areas east of interstate 205 of
the Portland metro area this afternoon. Freezing rain will continue
in the Columbia River and Upper Hood River Valley into Saturday
morning. A series of lows will result in wet weather this weekend
with snow levels around 4000 feet. Active weather continues through
much of next week.
&&
.SHORT TERM...Today through Monday...Radar and satellite, supporting
the HRRR and 00Z WRF, showing another round of widespread
precipitation lifting ne through nw Oregon this morning. Surface
observations showed temps at and a little below freezing through
much of the lower elevations of interior sw WA and nw OR still at 8
am. With the offshore flow continuing to feed the colder through the
Gorge today, do not expect to see the rapid warming during the day
that many of the models suggest, rather expect a slower warmup. So,
for now will extend the early expiring advisories until 1 pm to
allow for the slower warmup as the next round of precipitation moves
through. Still expect the main freezing rain impacts to retreat to
just near the Gorge this afternoon...with snow sleet and freezing
rain still in the Gorge and over to the Hood River Valley.
Remainder of short term discussion unchanged...The low will move
across NW Washington late tonight and Saturday morning. A series of
weaker lows moving along the front will slow the inland progression
and rain will persist through Sunday night turning to showers on
Monday. Onshore flow will allow temperatures to be closer to the
seasonal normals. SNow levels should be around 4000 feet this
weekend lowering to around 2000 feet behind the front on Monday. Two
to four inches of rain can be expected for the coast, coast range,
and Cascades from Saturday morning through Sunday night, with one to
2 inches for the interior low lands. ~TJ
.LONG TERM...Monday night through Thursday...Long term period will
begin with a showery pattern and snow levels between 1000 and 1500
feet. This may lead to some light accumulation in foothill
locations, but it does not appear there will be any snow down to the
valley floor at this time. Progressive pattern will continue through
the week with low snow levels early week, rising to 7-8kft by mid
week and dropping back below 4kft by the end of the week. Trended
temperatures a bit cooler in the Tuesday through Thursday
timeframe, but otherwise, will hold off on any significant changes
until models better resolve the Sunday/Monday system. Cold air
dropping south out of Canada on Tuesday gets shunted east of the
Rockies (for once) as the low pressure system from the end of the
weekend lingers in the Pacific NW and acts to repel the Canadian
High from settling into the Columbia Basin. This will be a welcome
relief for many in the storm weary Portland area, and will hopefully
signal the end of snowy and icy conditions for lowlands west of the
Cascades. /Bentley
&&
.AVIATION...Generally VFR over much of the area this morning.
However, there are areas of IFR in the central and south interior
valleys. First band of precipitation has moved through the
region, but the next organized band is moving through the south
areas and will push north over next few hours. Expect areas of
MVFR with this precipitation band. Precipitation type will be
primiarly -FZRA north of about KSLE through 21Z or so. Areas
south of KSLE likely to be -RA, but cannot rule out local -FZRA
through the morning. Areas near the Columbia Gorge will maintain
a -FZRA threat through the evening.
The incoming precipitation band clears the area by late
afternoon, but another impulse is expected to rotate through
during the evening, likely producing areas of MVFR. The cold air
layer has thinned to a depth of around 1800 ft this morning and
will continue to erode through the day. The KTTD-KDLS gradient
was -9.4 mb at 16Z, but the larger scale KOTH-KGEG gradient has
diminished from almost -20 mb Thu to -13 mb this morning. South
wind expected to develop at KONP and KEUG by the afternoon, then
reach KSLE by early evening.
KPDX AND APPROACHES...VFR conditions at 16Z. Next round of
precipitation expected impact the terminal and vicinity by 18Z,
The -FZRA threat likely to persist through at least early
afternoon, except into the evening east of the terminal out to
the Gorge. Looking for mainly VFR conditions through tonight, but
cannot rule out brief periods of MVFR. The cold air depth has
thinned to around 1800 ft, resulting in more gap-driven east
wind. LLWS becomes more likely through late afternoon. Do not
expect a shift to south wind until late this evening or
overnight. Weishaar
&&
.MARINE...Offshore flow will continue to weaken today as a
surface low pressure area out near 43N 130W at 12Z continues to
track north to northeast. This low reaches the far north Oregon
waters late this afternoon then to Vancouver Island between 06Z
and 12Z Sat. Current small craft advisory headlines look good.
Seas continue to run a foot or two below model guidance, but
should peak in the 10 to 13 ft range late this afternoon or by
evening.
Models continue to depict differences regarding the Sunday low
pressure system, which have major impacts on the forecast.
Confidence is growing that gale force wind will not occur, based
on the 12Z model guidance. Will assess this further for the
afternoon forecast. Models then show better agreement Mon night
through Tue, with sub 20 kt wind speeds. Differences crop up
again beyond Tue, but the general pattern is for offshore flow
Tue night through Thu.
Overall wave heights will be 6 to 9 ft through this morning,
then increasing to 10 to 13 ft this afternoon/evening with the
highest seas south. Wind wave will be a significant component, so
seas will be steep and choppy. Seas stay around 10 ft through
much of the weekend. Models continue to back off on seas with the
Sunday system, now showing them peaking in the mid-teens Sunday
evening and then quickly falling back to around 10 ft Monday and
falling further into the rest of next week. Weishaar
&&
.PQR WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
OR...Winter Storm Warning until 10 AM PST Saturday for Central
Columbia River Gorge-Upper Hood River Valley.
Winter Storm Warning until 6 AM PST Saturday for Western
Columbia River Gorge.
Winter Weather Advisory until 1 PM PST this afternoon for Lower
Columbia-Northern Oregon Cascade Foothills.
Winter Weather Advisory until 4 AM PST Saturday for Greater
Portland Metro Area.
Freezing Rain Advisory until 1 PM PST this afternoon for
Central Willamette Valley-South Willamette Valley.
Winter Weather Advisory until 6 PM PST this evening for Coast
Range of Northwest Oregon.
WA...Winter Storm Warning until 10 AM PST Saturday for Central
Columbia River Gorge.
Winter Storm Warning until 6 AM PST Saturday for Western
Columbia River Gorge.
Winter Weather Advisory until 1 PM PST this afternoon for I-5
Corridor in Cowlitz County-South Washington Cascade
Foothills.
Winter Weather Advisory until 4 AM PST Saturday for Greater
Vancouver Area.
PZ...Small Craft Advisory for winds until 4 PM PST Saturday for
Coastal Waters from Cape Shoalwater WA to Florence OR out
60 nm.
Small Craft Advisory for hazardous seas until 4 PM PST Saturday
for Coastal Waters from Cape Shoalwater WA to Florence OR
out 60 nm.
&&
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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.PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
550 AM PST FRI FEB 03 2017
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0310 AM ICE STORM 6 NE TIGARD 45.49N 122.69W
02/03/2017 MULTNOMAH OR DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
OREGON DOT AND PORTLAND FIRE AND RESCUE REPORT COLLISION
WITH UP TO 50 VEHICLES EITHER DIRECTLY INVOLVED OR STUCK
DUE TO BLOCKING VEHICLES ON I-5 SB AT CAPITOL HIGHWAY.
ALL LANES WERE CLOSED FOR APPROXIMATELY TWO HOURS.
&&
CULLENPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
711 AM PST FRI FEB 03 2017
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0657 AM ICE STORM BEAVERTON 45.48N 122.82W
02/03/2017 WASHINGTON OR PUBLIC
PUBLIC REPORTED 0.2 INCH OF FREEZING RAIN IN THE WESTERN
SUBURBS OF PORTLAND.
&&
TWPRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PORTLAND OR
855 AM PST FRI FEB 03 2017
..TIME... ...EVENT... ...CITY LOCATION... ...LAT.LON...
..DATE... ....MAG.... ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
..REMARKS..
0745 AM ICE STORM EUGENE 44.05N 123.11W
02/03/2017 LANE OR PUBLIC
FREEZING RAIN COVERING AUTOS, SIDEWALKS AND PLANTS IN
NORTH EUGENE.
&&
TW2 winter storm. Local standard time, as filed.
Across the river in Corbett, a local TV meteorologist recorded 0.5 inch of ice.
Across the river, the Hood River area recorded 4 to 6 inches of snow. Snow likely turned to ice in the western-most portion of this zone.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Washington in 2017Every state in 2017This day in weather historyWarnings in Washington, 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: 684214, 684216.