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Temperatures to drop with chance of lowland snow
A strong cold front is making its move across the region. This will drop temperatures, increase lowland snow, and pick up wind speeds at times.
SEATTLE - After an active morning of weather across Puget Sound, we're tracking pockets of snow for the rest of the day. Temperatures will plunge in a major way overnight.
We got reports of upwards of two inches of snow in Snohomish County this morning as bands of snow swept through Central Puget Sound. Snow coated the ground in Skagit and King Counties, too. Some snow fell over the Olympic Peninsula as well. Check out this picture over Sequim from earlier this morning.
For the rest of this afternoon, we expect mainly dry weather along the I-5 corridor from Tacoma through Bellingham. We can't rule out a few spots of snow returning to Puget Sound, but the brunt of the action for the rest of your Wednesday will be over the South Sound and the Olympic Peninsula.
As temperatures warm above the freezing mark this afternoon, any snow that accumulated in Puget Sound will melt and become slushy. Unfortunately, if roads aren't cleared and treated today, widespread ice is expected overnight and into Thursday morning. Be on the lookout for slick spots tomorrow, particularly on bridges and overpasses. Temps likely drop below freezing between 7 and 9 tonight.
This afternoon will be very interesting weather-wise. There will be a battle between relatively warm and cool air; this means that precipitation will waver between rain and snow. All it takes is a difference between a couple temperatures to determine the precipitation type. Here's a look at how things could play out via Futurecast:
Right now, it seems that a lot of rain/snow today will be focused along and south of Olympia. Snow and rain will also be on-and-off over the Olympic Peninsula, coast, the Hood Canal, Port Angeles and Sequim. Remember that snow forecasts are very challenging and subject to change. Check out the possible snow totals in the Winter Weather Advisory below:
A Wind Advisory remains in place over Western Whatcom County and the San Juans until 4 a.m. Friday. In addition to seeing northeasterly gusts to 50 mph, wind chills could be brutal.
One note: there's a High Surf Advisory in effect for the coast today, too. Breaking waves to 20 to 27 feet are possible, creating dangerous conditions.
Temperatures plummet to the teens and 20s overnight. Highs will only reach the low to mid 30s Thursday. The day will start cloudy but will wrap with gorgeous partly sunny skies.
Friday remains frigid, but the sunshine will be spectacular. Saturday will be lovely as well, featuring a mixture of sunshine and clouds. Late Saturday, lowland snow could return to Western Washington, but there's still a lot of uncertainty about what to expect.
At times next week, we may alternate between rain and snow. Stay tuned for the latest :)
Take good care,
Meteorologist Abby Acone
Follow me on Twitter @abbyacone, Instagram @abbyaconewx, TikTok @abbyaconetv and Facebook (Meteorologist Abby Acone)