An active pattern continued throughout the late February period. A strong storm system moved into western Washington throughout late February, bringing heavy mountain snowand lowland rain, breezy winds, and cooler temperatures.
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.
An active pattern continued throughout the late February period. A strong storm system moved into western Washington throughout late February, bringing heavy mountain snowand lowland rain, breezy winds, and cooler temperatures.
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 Feb 25, 2:47 AM PST, 3 hours 13 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Seattle WA
247 AM PST Sun Feb 25 2024
.SYNOPSIS...The first of several weather systems arrives today
with heavy mountain snow, lowland rain, and locally windy
conditions developing. Snow levels will drop below 1000 feet
behind the front Sunday night into Monday. Another strong front
arrives on Wednesday with cool and unsettled conditions to follow
through the end of the coming week.
&&
.SHORT TERM /TODAY THROUGH TUESDAY/...An active weather pattern
brings heavy mountain snow, gusty winds and a threat of lowland
snow to western WA over the short term.
Strong, moist, westerly flow prevails over the Pac NW with the
polar jet dipping south. Initially, snow levels in the mountains
will hover around 4000 ft but snow levels will drop further as
the day progresses and fall below all pass levels this evening.
In general, we're looking at storm total snowfall amounts between
1 to 3 feet in the Cascades and the Winter Storm Warning remains
in effect.
Down in the lowlands, showers expected today although the central
sound (and Seattle) may see some rain shadowing with westerly
downslope winds off the Olympics. A strong post-frontal onshore
push is expected through the Strait of Juan de Fuca this afternoon
and evening with westerly wind gusts of 30-40 mph across the east
strait, Admiralty Inlet area down to Everett. Winds will ease
late this evening.
The air mass will cool significantly overnight as a trough drops
down from B.C. Snow levels will lower to around 500 ft and there's
a threat of a rain/snow mix across much of the lowlands into
Monday morning. However, with the flow remaining onshore, surface
temperatures will remain above freezing which will help limit
accumulations and overall impacts. One area of concern would be
the East Puget Sound Lowlands near the Cascades (like North Bend)
where minor accumulations are possible, especially with heavier
showers. In addition, thunderstorms are possible along the coast
where instability is the greatest.
The air mass remains cool on Tuesday under northerly flow.
Showers, for the most part, are limited to the coast and
mountains. The flow briefly turns offshore and with some clearing
we may see morning temperatures near freezing. With this in mind,
there's another threat of lowland rain/snow mix although
accumulations (if any) remain low. 33
.LONG TERM /WEDNESDAY THROUGH SATURDAY/...Another wet/active
period of weather is slated for Tuesday night and Wednesday as the
next strong Pacific storm system moves in. More heavy snow is
forecast in the Cascades with possible travel impacts over the
highway passes. With the flow turning back to onshore, the overall
lowland snow threat will diminish.
The pattern is a little quieter past midweek as an upper low
spins overhead and the jet shifts south over CA. Although, we'll
still see a few lingering showers and temperatures will track
below normal. Snow levels dip again Thursday night into Friday and
again Friday night into Saturday for yet another rain/snow mix
threat in the lowlands. However, at this point, widespread and/or
significant accumulations are not expected. 33
&&
.AVIATION...Northwesterly flow aloft turning gradually to the west
this evening and tonight as an upper level trough deepens over the
region. A passing front will result in surface winds increasing
throughout W WA today, reaching their peak speeds this afternoon and
evening before slowly tapering off. Most terminals will see
southerly sustained winds ranging 10-15 kts with gusts up to 30 kts,
however terminals prone to higher wind speeds such as HQM or
orographic enhancement such as CLM could see faster sustained speeds
of 15-20 kts with gusts up to 40 kts.
Cigs largely MVFR to IFR as the aforementioned front and its
associated precip impact the area. They will generally remain that
way until wind speeds start to reach their peak in the afternoon.
The combo of increased winds and forced lifting from FROPA should
give cigs at least a slight boost, resulting in more widespread MVFR
conditions. Rain shadowing may allow for additional improvement in
the south Sound area, with SEA and BFI potentially getting a boost
into low-end VFR by the end of the TAF period.
KSEA...Borderline MVFR/IFR conditions present over the airport with
latest obs favoring high-end IFR. May see some wobbling in this
during the early morning hours...but would expect these borderline
conditions to persist until winds start to increase in the 15-18Z
time frame. While a stray shower still is not out of the question
here in the early morning, best chances for precip look to start in
the mid to late morning /post-15Z/ and persist throughout the day.
Temps late tonight and into early Monday morning will allow for
mixed precip, but ground temps remain warm enough to see little
impact for the terminal. Lower range wind speeds addressed above
apply.
18
&&
.MARINE...Strong onshore flow via a cold front passing through the
area will bring strong winds across all waters throughout the day
Sunday and spilling over into Monday. Inherited headlines remain in
place with most SCAs extended for another 12 hours. Additionally,
will upgrade inherited Gale Watch for the outer coastal waters into
a Warning, but it should be noted that latest forecast data suggests
that the best chances for gales over the outer waters in the morning
hours of Monday. Additional data combined with obs will likely
determine when this particular event will fall below criteria.
Seas around 8-12 feet before increasing to 12-16 feet tonight. Seas
will gradually lower by Tuesday, hovering around 10 feet through the
middle of the week.
18
&&
.HYDROLOGY...No river flooding is in the forecast over the next 7
days, but moderate to heavy precipitation will enter the region into
next week. This precipitation may contribute to river rises across
western Washington with the Skokomish River being the most
sensitive.
&&
.SEW WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WA...Winter Storm Warning until 4 PM PST Monday for West Slopes North
Cascades and Passes-West Slopes North Central Cascades and
Passes.
Winter Storm Warning from 10 AM this morning to 4 PM PST Monday
for West Slopes South Central Cascades and Passes.
PZ...Small Craft Advisory until 10 AM PST this morning for Central
U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-East Entrance U.S.
Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-West Entrance U.S. Waters
Strait Of Juan De Fuca.
Gale Warning from 10 AM this morning to 10 PM PST this evening
for Central U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-East
Entrance U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca-West Entrance
U.S. Waters Strait Of Juan De Fuca.
Small Craft Advisory until 4 AM PST Monday for Northern Inland
Waters Including The San Juan Islands-Puget Sound and Hood
Canal.
Small Craft Advisory from 10 AM this morning to 4 AM PST Monday
for Admiralty Inlet.
Small Craft Advisory until 4 PM PST Monday for Coastal Waters
From Cape Flattery To James Island Out 10 Nm-Coastal Waters
From James Island To Point Grenville Out 10 Nm-Coastal
Waters From Point Grenville To Cape Shoalwater Out 10 Nm.
Small Craft Advisory until midnight PST tonight for Coastal
Waters From Cape Flattery To James Island 10 To 60 Nm-
Coastal Waters From James Island To Point Grenville 10 To
60 Nm-Coastal Waters From Point Grenville To Cape
Shoalwater 10 To 60 Nm.
Gale Warning from midnight tonight to 4 AM PST Tuesday for
Coastal Waters From Cape Flattery To James Island 10 To 60
Nm-Coastal Waters From James Island To Point Grenville 10
To 60 Nm-Coastal Waters From Point Grenville To Cape
Shoalwater 10 To 60 Nm.
&&6 winter weather, 3 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
A measurement site at Mount Baker recorded around 14 20 inches of snowfall between the early morning hours of February 25th through the late afternoon hours of February 26th.
A measurement site at Paradise recorded generally around 10 to 14 inches of snowfall through early February 25th through the late afternoon hours of February 26th.
A measurement site at Snoqualmie Pass recorded around 8 to 10 inches of snowfall.. meanwhile another measurement site at Stevens Pass recorded around 12 to 16 inches of snowfall through the days of February 25th into the late evening hours of February 26th.
Reports of 4 inches of snowfall near Broadway and Madison 3 miles south of Everett, in Snohomish county via the public.
Measured 4.5 inches of snow at Madison and Evergreen.
A trained spotter measured 6.5 inches of snow in Greenbank on Whidbey Island.
Measured 4.6 inches of snow in Lake Stevens, Snohomish county and submitted the report via social media.
A member of the public measured 6 inches of snow accumulation on Langley Island and also posted the photo on social media.
Report on social media showed a measurement of 5.5 inches of snow in Freeland on Whidbey Island.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Washington in 2024Every state in 2024This day in weather historyWarnings in Washington, February 2024
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: 1165683, 1165684, 1165686, 1165673, 1165674, 1165676, 1165677, 1165678, 1165680.