Heavy snow fell in the north Cascades.
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 in the north Cascades.
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 Jan 5, 2:47 PM PST, 4 hours 13 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Seattle WA
247 PM PST Sat Jan 5 2019
.SYNOPSIS...A frontal system will bring wind and rain tonight
with showers behind the system into Sunday. High pressure will
briefly dry things out on Monday. Wind and rain will return
Tuesday and Wednesday as a another frontal system moves through.
Unsettled weather will continue Thursday with some drying possible
by Friday.
&&
.SHORT TERM /TODAY THROUGH TUESDAY/...Conditions remaining pretty
quiet and dry for much of the area this afternoon although current
radar already shows precip along the coast. Storm motion remains
from the south...so eastward progress will be driven more by the
approach of the actual trough itself. This is still expected to
occur gradually with precip finally getting into the eastern
portions of the CWA this evening. Guidance remains consistent with
precip amounts...including the snow amounts progged for the
Cascades...so the headlines covering the northern and southern
portions will not need to be extended into the central...given that
accumulations there will remain below criteria and only 2-4 inches
are expected in the passes. The main expected impact from this
system continues to be the sudden increase in wind speeds overnight.
Models remain consistent showing speeds that meet Wind Advisory
thresholds during the overnight hours tonight and into Sunday
morning with...as is present in the morning update...the area of
concern expanding into two more zones...the southwest interior and
the eastern strait.
The trough will traverse the area Sunday keeping precip in the
forecast exiting the area by early Monday morning. Although some
shortwaves may allow for lingering precip into Monday morning...this
appears to be relegated mostly to the Cascades. And while snow
levels in the wake of the exiting trough will drop down to around
1000 ft...the fact that the main threat of precip will have already
moved on makes any thoughts of lowland snow extremely unlikely. To
further cement that...an upper level ridge will build over the area
through the day Monday...making for generally dry conditions and
allowing snow levels to start to rebound. The next system to impact
the area will start to make its presence known early Tuesday morning
as a front associated with an upper level low out over the Pacific
will enter the CWA bringing a return to wet and windy
conditions...although models have backed off somewhat on initial
precip amounts with this system. SMR
.LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/...The upper low takes its
time approaching WA...allowing rains to continue into Wednesday. As
the system travels eastward...with will lose a bit of strength and
open up into a trough. Both ECMWF and GFS show this feature pushing
through the area by Wed night only to be followed by a secondary
trough during the overnight hours and into Thursday. Rain does not
look to start tapering off until Thursday night with some attempt at
an upper level ridge to build into the area...but both models start
this feature off as pretty dirty with sufficient moisture remaining
over the area to keep POPs into early Friday morning.
Currently...and surprisingly...both models remain in agreement that
this ridge looks to hold its ground through the day Friday and into
Saturday...allowing for a dry first half of next weekend. SMR
&&
.AVIATION...Expect increasing clouds and showers tonight as a
trough lifts north through the region. The flow aloft is southerly.
MVFR conditions are likely. There will be a burst of southerly winds
with this system in the lowlands, between 06-12z, with gusts to 30-
40kt. Winds will ease early Sunday morning with showers tapering
off. 33
KSEA...Rain increasing tonight with MVFR cigs likely. A strong wind
shift is expected between 06-12z with south gusts to 30-40 kt. Winds
will ease Sunday morning with showers decreasing. 33
&&
.MARINE...A strong southwest push will develop tonight as a
powerful system tracks north through Western Washington. Gales are
likely over all waters. Winds will ease Sunday morning as this
system exits, but speeds will likely remain within Small Craft
Advisory range. The next system, a broad 970 mb low, will spiral
offshore Monday night and Tuesday with strong offshore flow
expected. This system will weaken offshore on Wednesday but winds
will still remain strong. 33
&&
.HYDROLOGY...The Skokomish River remains above flood stage and will
continue to recede today. Light precipitation this afternoon into
Sunday may cause an additional small rise through Sunday. Then the
river will recede again and should fall below flood stage early next
week. Elsewhere, river flooding is not expected through Monday. A
wet system on Tuesday into Wednesday could cause another round of
minor flooding for rivers flowing off the Olympics but precipitation
amounts remain uncertain at this time. CEO
&&
.SEW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WA...Wind Advisory from 10 PM this evening to 10 AM PST Sunday for
Admiralty Inlet Area-Bellevue and Vicinity-Bremerton and
Vicinity-Central Coast-Eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca-
Everett and Vicinity-Hood Canal Area-Lower Chehalis Valley
Area-North Coast-San Juan County-Seattle and Vicinity-
Southwest Interior-Tacoma Area-Western Skagit County-
Western Whatcom County.
Winter Weather Advisory from 10 PM this evening to 10 AM PST
Sunday for Cascades of Pierce and Lewis Counties-Cascades
of Whatcom and Skagit Counties.
PZ...Small Craft Advisory for rough bar until 1 PM PST Sunday for
Grays Harbor Bar.
Small Craft Advisory from 7 AM to 10 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 7 AM PST Sunday for Central U.S. Waters
Strait Of Juan De Fuca-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-
East Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-Northern
Inland Waters Including The San Juan Islands-West Entrance
U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca.
Small Craft Advisory from 7 AM to 4 PM 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-West Entrance U.S. Waters
Strait Of Juan De Fuca.
Small Craft Advisory from 6 AM to 4 PM PST Sunday for Admiralty
Inlet-Puget Sound and Hood Canal.
Gale Warning until 6 AM PST Sunday for Admiralty Inlet-Puget
Sound and Hood Canal.
&&
www.weather.gov/seattle1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
The Mt. Baker observation showed 19 inches in 24 hours, 24 inches total.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Washington in 2019Every state in 2019This day in weather historyWarnings in Washington, January 2019
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: 798970.