Winter Weather in Washington, January 4, 2019

Name: Winter Weather in Washington, January 4, 2019
Start: 2019-01-04T04:00
End: 2019-01-04T18:00
Location: Washington

January 4, 2019 · NWS PDT · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Interstate 90 was closed in both directions for much of the day January 4th between North Bend and Ellensburg as a result of several multi-vehicle crashes that occurred prior to sunrise including 1 fatality (indirect). A mix of rain and snow that fell earlier in the night left a wet surface as temperatures fell to just below freezing near daybreak creating treacherous driving conditions.

The toll

Deaths: 1
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

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.

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 4, 1:57 AM PST, 2 hours 3 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 4, 1:57 AM PST, 2 hours 3 minutes before

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In the hours before

Local storm report, Jan 3, 10:55 PM PST, 5 hours 5 minutes before

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Event by event

1 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Weather, East Slopes of the Washington Cascades

When: January 4, 4:00 AM PST to 6:00 PM PST
Where: East Slopes of the Washington Cascades forecast zone
Deaths: 0 direct, 1 indirect
Reported by: Department of Highways

The people who died

As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.

Event	Date	Age	Sex	Where	Kind
Winter Weather, East Slopes of the Washington Cascades	2019-01-04			Vehicle/Towed Trailer	Indirect

What these are

Winter Weather: Snow, sleet or freezing rain below warning levels that still caused disruption, damage or casualties.

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

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Washington in 2019 Every state in 2019 This day in weather history Warnings in Washington, January 2019

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: 791649.