A frontal system moving across the region lowered snow levels to the surface across the eastern mountains, resulting in rain transitioning to snow in these areas. Heavier bands of snow across Wallowa County overnight Tuesday and early Wednesday morning resulted in 6 inches of snow accumulating across the area.
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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 frontal system moving across the region lowered snow levels to the surface across the eastern mountains, resulting in rain transitioning to snow in these areas. Heavier bands of snow across Wallowa County overnight Tuesday and early Wednesday morning resulted in 6 inches of snow accumulating across the area.
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 Nov 1, 3:48 AM PST, 12 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Pendleton OR
448 AM PDT Tue Nov 1 2022
.Updated aviation discussion
.SHORT TERM...Today through Thursday...Remnants of the atmospheric
river (AR) stretches from SW Oregon to eastern Washington this
morning as it continues to be tilted by the approaching upper level
trough acting as a cold front. Currently snow levels range from
around 3500 feet over the central Washington Cascades to 5000-6000
feet over central and far eastern Oregon. The approaching upper
level trough will continue to slowly push the front eastward today
and eventually tilt it more dues N-S overnight before it exits into
Idaho early Wednesday morning. Snow levels will continue dropping
through the day and overnight eventually reaching 1500-2500 feet.
This will lead to the accumulation of snow over the eastern
mountains thus winter weather advisories have been issued for some
areas above 3000 feet. Elevations between 2000-3000 feet could also
see some light accumulations overnight especially in the eastern
mountain valleys. The upper level trough will pass over the forecast
area on Wednesday keeping conditions cool and unsettled with some
rain and snow showers. The trough exits to the east Wednesday night
with showers coming to an end. A brief ridge of high pressure will
keep conditions dry Thursday but the next system will begin to
spread some precipitation into the forecast area Thursday night.
Initial snow levels will be around 2000-3000 feet overnight but then
begin to rise after midnight.
The trough arriving into the region today will usher in some of the
coldest air so far this season. The potential exists for some
freezing temperatures in the lower elevations as early as Wednesday
morning but this also depends on cloud cover. The greater potential
exists Wednesday night into Thursday morning as skies are more
likely to be clear following the departure of the upper level trough.
Freeze watches have been issued and continue for the possibility of
below freezing temperatures over the next couple of nights.
.LONG TERM...Friday through Tuesday...An upper ridge will be
moving out of the region and the forecast area, and precipitation
with the next weather system will be moving into the forecast
area. At first, the precipitation will be mainly over the Cascades
and the eastern/northeast mountains, with a rain shadow effect in
the lower elevation areas in between these mountain ranges.
However, as the upper trough behind the departing ridge settles
over the area precipitation will eventually fill in over the
entire forecast area Friday night into Saturday. However, the
Lower Columbia Basin (especially the WA Basin) will be the least
likely area to receive precipitation Friday and Friday night. The
ECMWF and GEFS ensembles are in very good agreement with each
other for Friday and Friday night, as are the deterministic models
for this same time period.
On Saturday through Sunday, conditions will be wet as a slowly
sagging trough drops into the region from the north. This trough
will not be as amplified as the weather system affecting the
region in the short term. However, precipitation will still be
abundant, especially outside of the Lower Columbia Basin and the
Yakima/Kittitas Valleys. Snow levels will be dropping through the
day on Saturday as colder air filters into the region from the
north, north of the sagging upper trough and a strong jet stream.
This will cause rain to change over to snow above 2500 feet in
the northwest CWA and above about 4500 feet in the southern CWA.
This cold air is reflected on the ECMWF EFI index, which shows a
good potential for below normal temperatures Saturday night and
Sunday with EFI values of -0.82 to -0.89 by Sunday. This cold air
is expected to persist into Monday. High temperatures will cool
from the mid 50s in the lower elevations on Saturday to the 40s to
near 50 on Sunday. In the mountains, temperatures are expected to
drop to the upper 20s to upper 30s by Sunday. Lows will range
from upper 20s to mid 30s lower elevations to the mid teens to mid
20s in the mountains by Sunday morning.
The aforementioned strong upper jet stream will also sag
southward with the upper trough, with tightening pressure
gradients at the surface as well. This will result in strong winds
to develop later Friday through early Saturday evening. The EFI
index is also showing a good potential for above normal wind
speeds, with EFI values of 0.85 to 0.89 on Friday and Saturday.
It is likely that at least wind advisories will eventually be
needed, if not warnings. However, it is too soon to have high
enough confidence in the forecast to issue anything at this time.
On Monday, POPs will still be substantial in southern areas with
likely category POPs, and lesser chance category POPs from the
Blue mountain Foothills northward, as well as central and north
central OR. With the colder temperatures, the mountains will
likely receive snow above 1500 feet Sunday night, rising to 2500
feet on Monday. Would not be surprised to see some wet snow
flakes even in the lower elevations late Sunday night and Monday
morning, before snow levels rise by Monday afternoon. Also, winds
on Monday will be much lighter than on Saturday and Sunday. 88
&&
.AVIATION...12Z TAFs...A weather system will bring periods of MVFR
conditions to KPDT, KRDM, KBDN, KALW through early afternoon due to
lowered CIGs and VIS in -RA and/or -RASN. All other terminals will
have prevailing VFR conditions for the next 24 hours. Winds will be
mostly light this morning with occasional gusts to 10-15 Kts.
Conditions will improve by tonight at all terminals as the current
weather system moves out of the area.
&&
.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
PDT 44 34 46 27 / 100 60 30 20
ALW 47 37 49 28 / 100 70 30 20
PSC 48 40 50 31 / 100 20 10 10
YKM 48 30 49 25 / 20 10 10 10
HRI 47 37 51 29 / 100 20 20 20
ELN 49 32 49 24 / 20 10 10 10
RDM 41 30 43 19 / 100 40 40 20
LGD 44 33 40 23 / 100 100 50 30
GCD 48 32 41 20 / 100 80 40 30
DLS 55 39 52 31 / 60 30 30 10
&&
.PDT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
OR...Freeze Watch from late Wednesday night through Thursday morning
for ORZ041-044-507-508-510.
Winter Weather Advisory from 5 AM early this morning to 5 AM PDT
Wednesday for ORZ050-502-503.
WA...Freeze Watch from late Wednesday night through Thursday morning
for WAZ024-028-029-521.
Winter Weather Advisory from 5 AM early this morning to 5 AM PDT
Wednesday for WAZ030.
Freeze Watch from late tonight through Wednesday morning for
WAZ026-027.
&&
SHORT TERM...91
LONG TERM....88
AVIATION...88The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
1 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
A Cocorahs observer 4 miles west of Joseph, OR measured 6 inches of new snowfall that ended before 0500 PST on November 2nd. A Cocorahs observer 1 mile southeast of Flora, OR measured 6 inches of new snowfall that ended before 0600 PST on November 2nd.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Oregon in 2022Every state in 2022This day in weather historyWarnings in Oregon, November 2022
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: 1066888.