An upper level trough and surface cold front passage enhanced by an atmospheric river produced bands of moderate to heavy snowfall across portions of our mountain zones within the atmospheric river path through the weekend. Ahead of the trough passage, an area of enhanced lift developed over central Oregon, resulting in heavy snowfall occurring the afternoon the 16th.
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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.
An upper level trough and surface cold front passage enhanced by an atmospheric river produced bands of moderate to heavy snowfall across portions of our mountain zones within the atmospheric river path through the weekend. Ahead of the trough passage, an area of enhanced lift developed over central Oregon, resulting in heavy snowfall occurring the afternoon the 16th.
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 Mar 14, 3:29 AM PST, 3 hours 31 minutes earlier.
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Pendleton OR
429 AM PDT Fri Mar 14 2025
.Updated for Aviation
SHORT TERM...Today through Sunday...The short term period is
characterized by an active weather pattern with precip and gusty
winds. For today, the Columbia Basin will be dry with PoPs above 30%
over the central OR and John Day Highlands during the morning hours.
PoPs will then increase further through the remaining forecast area
this afternoon into tonight. The trough will then move inland of the
PacNW over the weekend, producing more precip as this system
continues.
This will further increase snow chances for the mountain areas,
particularly for the OR Cascades having snow accumulations of 1 to 3
feet, which meets the criteria for a Winter Storm Warning through
the weekend. This also includes the WA Cascades with snow amounts
reaching between 10 to 16 inches. The northern Blues will also have
snowfall above 6 inches of snowfall as well, which has alerted for
an Winter Weather Advisory through tomorrow night. By Sunday night,
snowfall amounts should be light again. Rain for the lowlands will
start off light through tomorrow but increases up to 1 inches or
less Sunday with the ongoing system. The Lower Basin, however, may
range between 0.15-0.25 inches.
Winds will be breezy today at 15-25 mph across the forecast area,
but becomes gusty (up to 45 mph) tomorrow around the Columbia Basin,
Foothills of the Blues, Yakima Valley, northern Blues and the crest
of OR Cascades. As the system continues, this will strengthen
surface gradient including the westerly flow. With gusty winds and
mountain snow over the Cascades and northern Blues, we are
potentially looking at blowing snow conditions. Therefore, it is
highly recommended to proceed with caution when traveling. However,
winds should gradually decrease Sunday to breezy conditions again as
the surface gradients weaken (40-50% confidence). Feaster/97
LONG TERM...
Monday through Thursday...Another in a series of troughs will move
onshore in northern California on Monday. This trough will bring
more precipitation to the region...mountain snow and low elevation
rain. However QPF values are much lower. The crests of the Oregon
Cascades, Blue Mountains and Wallowas will receive upwards of 0.50
inches. most lower elevation areas will only receive a few
hundredths, if that, with portions of the Columbia Basin, Yakima and
Kittitas Valleys receiving very little, if any.
Snow during this time will be 6 inches plus along the crest of the
Oregon Cascades probably around 3 to 5 inches for the Washington
Cascades, 3 to 6 inches for the Blue Mountains along the crest with
an inch or 2 lower down.
The trough departs the area by Tuesday morning and northwest flow
builds in ahead of an upper ridge. This will allow for most areas
to dry out, except for the mountains, where precipitation will
linger.
The ridge full builds in by Tuesday afternoon and the whole area is
expected to be dry Tuesday evening and Tuesday night.
Precipitation is expected to return by later Wednesday or Thursday
as the next system approaches, though there are timing differences,
with the deterministic ECMWF being faster (later Wednesday) and the
GFS being slower (sometime Thursday). Some of these differences are
to be expected on the day 6/7 time scale. However the ensemble
clusters are supporting the faster ECMWF solution during this time
by about 45% to 26/27 percent on Tuesday and Wednesday, which gives
more support to its solution.
It is expected to be breezy Monday, Tuesday and Thursday afternoons,
in the usual breezy areas like the Columbia Basin with gusts in the
25 to 30 mph range, toward the end of the period, the wind gusts may
be more affected by what occurs with the next system.
AVIATION...12Z TAFs...VFR conditions are generally expected at all
TAF sites. The only exceptions being BDN and RDM, where some MVFR
CIGS are possible this afternoon. The next system will begin to
affect the region and bring lowering clouds through the day, with
precipitation developing from early afternoon (BDN/RDM to
overnight (PDT, YKM, ALW, PSC). All areas will see RA except BDN
and RDM where it will be cold enough to support some SN.
Winds will generally be 10 kts or less except for BDN and RDM
where winds will gust in the 20 to 25 kt range.
&&
.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
PDT 52 37 55 41 / 20 70 70 90
ALW 51 38 53 41 / 20 70 80 90
PSC 54 36 59 40 / 10 50 40 70
YKM 49 32 54 34 / 10 50 60 80
HRI 54 36 57 41 / 10 60 50 80
ELN 46 32 51 31 / 10 60 70 80
RDM 48 31 51 36 / 60 60 60 90
LGD 43 32 47 36 / 30 80 90 100
GCD 43 32 46 37 / 60 80 90 100
DLS 51 37 54 39 / 30 70 90 90
&&
.PDT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
OR...Winter Weather Advisory from 11 PM this evening to 11 PM PDT
Saturday for ORZ502.
Winter Storm Warning from 8 AM this morning to 11 PM PDT Sunday
for ORZ509.
WA...Winter Weather Advisory from 11 PM this evening to 11 PM PDT
Saturday for WAZ030.
Winter Storm Warning from 5 AM Saturday to 11 AM PDT Sunday for
WAZ522.
&&
SHORT TERM...97
LONG TERM....77
AVIATION...77The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
The Hog Pass SNOTEL measured 16 inches of new snow in a 24 hour period ending at 1700 PDT on March 15th. A social media post 11 miles south southwest of Three Rivers, OR reported 23 inches of new storm total snow at 2000 on March 16th.
The High Ridge SNOTEL measured 10 inches of new snow in a 20 period ending at 2000 PDT on March 15th. The Milkshakes SNOTEL measured 10 inches of new snow in a 24 hour period ending at 0200 PDT on March 16th.
The Cocorahs station OR-DS-17, that is 2.3 miles west northwest of Bend, reported a storm total snow amount of 6 inches at 0700 PDT on March 17th, with estimated end of snowfall between 1815 PDT to 1900 PDT on March 16th. The Cocorahs station OR-DS-44, that is 3.5 miles east southeast of Bend, reported a storm total snow amount of 4.3 inches at 0700 PDT on March 17th, with estimated end of snowfall between 1815 PDT to 1900 PDT.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Oregon in 2025Every state in 2025This day in weather historyWarnings in Oregon, March 2025
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: 1249227, 1249223, 1249231.