Heavy snow fell at Mount Baker and Paradise.
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 SEW wrote it up.
Heavy snow fell at Mount Baker and Paradise.
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 Dec 22, 1:55 PM PST, 3 hours 5 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Seattle WA
155 PM PST Sat Dec 22 2018
.SYNOPSIS...The next weather system will push across the region
tonight bringing widespread rain and mountain snow (mainly above
2000 feet). Shower activity will continue Sunday gradually
diminishing with time. A break in the weather is expected to last
through Tuesday before the next system arrives Wednesday.
&&
.SHORT TERM /NOW THROUGH MONDAY/...The next frontal system is poised
to push across Washington tonight. This will bring widespread rain
and mountain snow to the region along with isolated gusty winds and
perhaps a few weak thunderstorms tonight through Sunday afternoon.
Conditions will improve Sunday night into Monday with just a few
lingering showers, mainly in the mountains.
RAIN/THUNDER: Widespread rain is expected across the lower
elevations tonight turning to rain showers in the wake of a cold
front early Sunday morning and continuing through Sunday night. Rain
amounts will vary from 0.10-0.5" in the typical rain shadow areas to
2"+ in the Olympics & Cascades below the snow level. Weak
instability associated with modestly cold temperatures aloft will
develop along the coast overnight and spread to a few areas inland
on Sunday. This could bring a slight chance of thunder with some of
the more convective showers. These will need to be monitored for
bursts of locally heavy precipitation, small hail, etc.
SNOW: Similar to the expected rain, snowfall is expected to be
heaviest overnight tonight with snow levels 1500-3000 feet. Snowfall
will become showery/intermittent in nature behind the front Sunday
and Sunday Night with snow levels generally 2500-3500 feet. The
latest guidance has come in a bit higher with precipitation amounts,
bringing snowfall totals close to warning-level tonight through
early Monday morning. This, combined with the heavy holiday travel
period, was the basis for the decision to upgrade the mountains to a
Winter Storm Warning at elevations above 2000 feet.
WIND: Finally, this frontal system will be associated with a period
of enhanced winds tonight along the coast where gusts will likely
reach around 40 MPH. Slightly stronger winds gusting to 45 MPH are
possible over the north interior waters and adjacent land (San
Juans, Whidbey Island, Camano Island, western Whatcom County, etc)
and a Wind Advisory has been issued for those areas. Winds will
subside in the wake of the system Sunday. While these winds will not
be as strong as Thursday's storm, there remains the potential for
impacts as clean-up and restoration from that storm continues.
-Wolcott-
.LONG TERM /TUESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/...A transient upper ridge will
probably bring mostly dry weather Tuesday and Tuesday night, though
a stray shower cannot be ruled out completely. The next front is
forecast to arrive around Wednesday, with showers Thursday, tapering
Friday. Highs will be in the 40s, with lows in the 30s. The snow
level will fall to as low as 1500 feet. Some showers could have a
little snow mixed in at times. Burke
&&
.AVIATION...A frontal system over the offshore waters will push
inland overnight. Southwest flow aloft. The air mass is moist and
stable, and will become somewhat unstable behind the front late
tonight through Sunday.
The front will bring rain and locally windy conditions as it moves
through. Precipitation will become showery behind the front with
precipitation increasingly tied to the terrain. Ceilings will
mainly be VFR ahead of the front due to low level offshore flow.
With and behind the front, conditions will become mainly MVFR with
ceilings and showers. Some terminal locations in the lee of the
Olympics and coastal terrain will likely see some clearing at
times Sunday afternoon. Albrecht
KSEA...Low level southeast to east flow will keep ceilings in the
VFR category. Flow will become more southwest to south with the
frontal passage 10Z-12Z resulting in CIGS falling to MVFR. Some
light rain expected ahead of the front with showers reducing VIS
to about 5SM with and behind the front. Some scattering in clouds
at times is possible after 18Z. Albrecht
&&
.MARINE...A front over the offshore waters will move inland
overnight. This front will bing gales to the coastal waters, the
east entrance to the strait, the northern inland waters, and a
small area on the eastern side of the central strait. Winds will
turn southwesterly and diminish behind the front. Gale warnings
continue for all waters except for the western portions of the
strait and for Puget Sound and Hood Canal for tonight.
Expect ocean swell to rise to 17-20 ft late tonight through
Sunday behind the front then to gradually subside starting later
Sunday into Sunday night. The seas are not expected to be high
enough at the beaches at this time to require the need for a high
surf advisory on the Pacific beaches.
Astronomical tides are near their highest values of the year for
the next few days. The high tides combined with below normal
atmospheric pressures will result in minor coastal flooding -or
minor tidal overflow- for a couple of hours around the high tides
along area shorelines. Impacts are expected to be minor. A coastal
flood advisory is in effect for all of the area shorelines on
Sunday. The advisory may need to be extended into Monday or
Tuesday, but confidence that the tidal values will be high enough
to produce minor flooding behind Sunday is not high. Albrecht
&&
.HYDROLOGY...The Skokomish River in Mason county remains below flood
stage and the trend is for water levels to remain below flood this
afternoon and this evening. However...with additional rains on the
way and how quickly the Skokomish has been known to react to
additional rainfall...will maintain the flood warning at this time.
Current forecasts suggest that while river levels are expected to
rise above flood stage...the latest solutions have levels cresting
only just above minor flood stage. Have opted to go a bit higher
than that given all of the recent flood activity in that area over
the past week. Other rivers across the region are not expected to
flood over the next week. SMR
&&
.SEW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WA...Coastal Flood Advisory from 2 AM to 10 AM PST Sunday for
Admiralty Inlet Area-Bremerton and Vicinity-Everett and
Vicinity-Hood Canal Area-San Juan County-Seattle and
Vicinity-Southwest Interior-Tacoma Area-Western Skagit
County-Western Whatcom County.
Winter Storm Warning until 4 AM PST Monday for Cascades of
Pierce and Lewis Counties-Cascades of Snohomish and King
Counties-Cascades of Whatcom and Skagit Counties-Olympics.
Wind Advisory from 6 PM this evening to 4 AM PST Sunday for
Admiralty Inlet Area-San Juan County-Western Whatcom County.
Coastal Flood Advisory until 4 PM PST Sunday for Central Coast-
Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca-North Coast-Western Strait
of Juan De Fuca.
PZ...Small Craft Advisory for rough bar until 2 AM PST Monday for
Grays Harbor Bar.
Small Craft Advisory from midnight tonight to 8 PM PST Sunday
for Coastal Waters From Cape Flattery To James Island 10 To
60 Nm-Coastal Waters From Cape Flattery To James Island Out
10 Nm-Coastal Waters From James Island To Point Grenville
10 To 60 Nm-Coastal Waters From James Island To Point
Grenville Out 10 Nm-Coastal Waters From Point Grenville To
Cape Shoalwater 10 To 60 Nm-Coastal Waters From Point
Grenville To Cape Shoalwater Out 10 Nm.
Gale Warning until midnight PST tonight for Coastal Waters From
Cape Flattery To James Island 10 To 60 Nm-Coastal Waters
From Cape Flattery To James Island Out 10 Nm-Coastal Waters
From James Island To Point Grenville 10 To 60 Nm-Coastal
Waters From James Island To Point Grenville Out 10 Nm-
Coastal Waters From Point Grenville To Cape Shoalwater 10
To 60 Nm-Coastal Waters From Point Grenville To Cape
Shoalwater Out 10 Nm.
Gale Warning until 4 AM PST Sunday for Central U.S. Waters
Strait Of Juan De Fuca-East Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of
Juan De Fuca-Northern Inland Waters Including The San Juan
Islands.
Small Craft Advisory from 4 AM to noon PST Sunday for Northern
Inland Waters Including The San Juan Islands.
Small Craft Advisory until 8 PM PST Sunday for West Entrance
U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca.
Small Craft Advisory until 4 AM PST Sunday for Admiralty Inlet.
Small Craft Advisory from 4 AM to 4 PM PST Sunday for Puget
Sound and Hood Canal.
&&
www.weather.gov/seattle2 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Mount Baker received 18 inches of snow in 24 hours.
Paradise on Mount Rainier received 18 inches of snow in 24 hours.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Washington in 2018Every state in 2018This day in weather historyWarnings in Washington, December 2018
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: 791209, 791210.