Brief sunshine this afternoon before stormy weather arrives tonight

Calm before the storm

Wind, rain and possible thunderstorms return tonight.

SEATTLE - Happy victory Monday! There's some light rain is falling in the convergence zone. We'll dry out by lunchtime and clouds will clear for some brief sunshine this afternoon. Highs will be around 60 degrees.

A rather potent system will approach tonight, increasing clouds by late afternoon and evening and bring widespread rain starting tonight. Western WA is under the threat for isolated thunderstorms. Storms may be accompanied by heavy downpours, lightning, small hail and strong gusts. Soggy conditions are on tap for most of Tuesday.

A High Wind Watch is in effect for the eastern slopes of the Cascades and Eastern WA tomorrow afternoon through tomorrow night. Gusts can be as high as 60mph and can make for dangerous driving conditions. Downed powerlines, downed trees and power outages are also possible. In Western WA, we could see gusts as high as 30-40mph, some models suggesting 50mph gusts in Tacoma!

We'll dry it out for the most part on Wednesday and especially Thursday with some sunshine! Clouds will return Friday and through the weekend with a slight chance for rain on Saturday. Overall, temperatures will be near the norm with highs in the upper 50s and lower 60s, and lows in the upper 40s.