Washington, 2022

Heavy Snow in Washington, November 3 to 6, 2022

November 3 to 6, 2022 · NWS SEW · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

An active weather pattern brought several rounds of snow to the Olympic and Cascade mountains of Western Washington. The heaviest snow fell across the central and southern Cascades.

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
None recorded
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
2

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 SEW wrote it up.

An active weather pattern brought several rounds of snow to the Olympic and Cascade mountains of Western Washington. The heaviest snow fell across the central and southern Cascades.

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 Seattle, WA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 3, 7:44 AM PST, 5 hours 16 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Nov 3, 7:44 AM PST, 5 hours 16 minutes before
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Event by event

2 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.

Heavy Snow, Cascades of Snohomish and King Counties

When
November 3, 1:00 PM PST to November 4, 10:00 AM PST
Where
Cascades of Snohomish and King Counties forecast zone
Reported by
Park/Forest Service

Snow began at Stevens Pass during the early afternoon hours of the 3rd, with around 12 inches of new snow accumulating within a 12 hours period shortly after midnight on the 4th. Snow then continued through most of the morning hours on the 4th before temperatures rose above freezing.

At Snoqualmie Pass, there was a burst of heavy snow on the 3rd, similar to the conditions at Stevens Pass initially. Amounts fell just below winter weather advisory levels, with about 10 inches falling within a 12 hour period. Snow continued into the 4th before temperatures rose above freezing, with little additional accumulation.

Heavy Snow, Cascades of Pierce and Lewis Counties

When
November 3, 1:00 PM PST to November 6, 7:00 AM PST
Where
Cascades of Pierce and Lewis Counties forecast zone
Reported by
Park/Forest Service

Decent snowfall began at Mt Rainier National Park on the 3rd in the early afternoon. New snow accumulation recorded at Paradise suggested about 11 inches of new snow fell within a 12 hour period. Snow then continued through the 4th before tapering into the early hours of the 6th. By daybreak on the 6th, about 14 inches of new snow had accumulated at the Park.

What these are

Heavy Snow
Snowfall reaching the local warning threshold without the other hazards of a winter storm.

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

The same day elsewhere

More

Every storm in Washington in 2022Every state in 2022This day in weather historyWarnings in Washington, November 2022

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 2026-09-30. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 1067379, 1067380.