The Inland Northwest region was impacted by two winter storm systems during February 16 through 19. A cold front brought lower snow levels to the valley floors.
Every event with a place to put it; 3 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
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 OTX wrote it up.
The Inland Northwest region was impacted by two winter storm systems during February 16 through 19. A cold front brought lower snow levels to the valley floors. This storm was followed by a warm and moist weather system from California. While most locations had 1 to 3 inches, a few locations received 4 to 6 inches.
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 Spokane, WA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Feb 16, 4:17 AM PST, 4 hours 43 minutes earlier. Its key messages:
Area Forecast Discussion
National Weather Service Spokane WA
417 AM PST Mon Feb 16 2026
.KEY MESSAGES...
- A mix of rain and wet snow for valleys Monday transitioning
to snow showers Tuesday through Thursday.
- Periodic hit and miss heavy snow showers next week resulting
in winter travel conditions.
&&
.SYNOPSIS...
A active weather pattern this week. Mountain snow and rain in
the valleys transitioning to on and off snow showers Tuesday
into the weekend with lowland accumulations.
&&
.DISCUSSION...
Today through Tuesday: A pattern change is in store for the forecast
area this week as an upper level low trough and surface low deepens
off the PNW coast. This will usher in colder than normal
temperatures aloft, which will lead to a mix of rain and snow in the
lowlands as snow levels lower. By early tomorrow morning, after the
passage of a cold front, snow levels will have lowered below 1000
feet for much of the area. The upper level flow will gradually shift
from the southwest to nearly due south as the trough deepens
considerably by tomorrow morning. This flow will favor highest
precipitation amounts east of the Okanogan Valley. Areas that will
see the highest snowfall with this system include the Okanogan
Highlands, Central Panhandle Mountains, Northern Panhandle
Mountains, and Lewis and Southern Nez Perce Counties. Sherman and
Lookout Passes have a 40-50% chance of seeing four inches of snow or
more. Due to the convective nature of the precipitation, snowfall
rates near 1" an hour in these areas cannot be ruled out. A Winter
Weather Advisory has been issued for these areas alongside Lewis and
Southern Nez Perce Counties. Bottom line: expect wintry travel
conditions in these areas through this morning and into tomorrow
morning.
Snow levels dropping will lead to lowland rain transitioning to a
rain/snow mix, and then mostly snow by early tomorrow morning.
Accumulations right now look light, with NBM probabilities showing a
30-40% chance of the Spokane area seeing 1" of snow through tomorrow
night. South of Spokane, into the Palouse and Pullman area, and in
the Coeur d'Alene area, those chances rise to 50-60%. Bottom line:
expect wintry driving conditions through the lowlands beginning
tonight into tomorrow morning. By tomorrow afternoon, the surface
low will have moved eastward and out of the area.
Wednesday through Sunday: The weather pattern remains unsettled
through the rest of the week and into the weekend as lower heights
prevail over the area. Clusters show significantly lower heights
over much of the PNW through the weekend. EFI values highlight a
decrease in temperatures, which will be seen as high temperatures
drop into the low to mid 30s and low temperatures drop into the low
20s. Snow will be the primary precipitation type through the week.
While the trough will be too far west of us, resulting in the bulk
of the precipitation not falling in our area, expect snow in the
mountains and light snow in the lowlands. Bottom line: expect
continued wintry, snowy conditions through next week, both in the
mountains and in the lowlands. /AS
&&
.AVIATION...
12Z TAFS: Low stratus will continue to bring IFR/MVFR ceilings
across the Basin and valleys. As the next round of moisture
continues to spread Southwest to Northeast, sites will have off
and on precip through the day. Cooler incoming air mass will
transition the rain to wintry mix or snow stating around 20Z for
EAT-MWH followed by around 01Z for GEG-SFF-COE-PUW. LWS is
expected to see only rain and be MVFR/VFR through the period.
Rest of the TAF sites will have IFR/MVFR conditions through the
period. Little to no snow accumulation is expected.
FORECAST CONFIDENCE AND/OR ALTERNATE SCENARIOS:
Moderate confidence for IFR/MVFR conditions Monday as precip
increases. Moderate to high confidence in precip type, with
moderate confidence in transition times. /JDC
-----------------------
Confidence descriptors:
Low - Less than a 30 percent chance
Moderate - 30 to 70 percent chance
High - Greater than a 70 percent chance
For additional probabilistic information for NWS Spokane
airports,please refer to the Aviation Dashboard on our
webpage: https:/www.weather.gov/otx/avndashboard
&&
.Preliminary Point Temps/PoPs...
Spokane 44 27 39 26 36 22 / 90 80 30 20 40 30
Coeur d'Alene 44 29 39 25 35 22 / 90 90 50 30 60 40
Pullman 46 27 39 27 34 24 / 80 90 50 50 70 30
Lewiston 52 32 45 32 39 27 / 60 90 30 50 50 20
Colville 38 28 38 23 36 20 / 90 60 50 20 50 40
Sandpoint 39 31 37 24 32 21 / 100 90 70 40 70 60
Kellogg 46 29 36 26 34 22 / 80 90 80 50 80 60
Moses Lake 40 27 42 25 39 24 / 80 20 10 10 20 10
Wenatchee 38 27 38 26 37 25 / 70 20 20 10 20 20
Omak 37 29 39 24 36 20 / 70 30 20 10 10 10
&&
.OTX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
WA...Winter Weather Advisory until 6 PM PST this evening for
Okanogan Highlands.
ID...Winter Weather Advisory from 7 PM this evening to 10 AM PST
Tuesday for Central Panhandle Mountains-Lewis and
Southern Nez Perce Counties.
&&The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
3 heavy snow. Local standard time, as filed.
Observer reported 5.5 inches of snow 4 miles west of Boyds.
Observer reported 5.5 inches 2 miles northwest of Pullman.
Observer reported 6 inches of snow 3 miles northwest of Valley.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
Every storm in Washington in 2026Every state in 2026This day in weather historyWarnings in Washington, February 2026
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: 1321116, 1321117, 1321119.