May 12, 2009 in City, Idaho

Cool, showery today with freeze coming tonight

Winds add chill to the day

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A cool blustery day with showers and thunderstorms possible this afternoon are lined up for the Inland Northwest with a freeze warning issued for the Spokane and Coeur d’Alene region, upper Columbia Basin and Palouse for tonight.

An upper level low pressure area is crossing the Cascade Mountains this morning and should bring more unsettled weather to the Inland Northwest through today.

As winds die down tonight, temperatures are expected to fall with low humidity leading to overnight temperatures below freezing. Gardeners and growers are warned that the cold could affect sensitive plants and foliage, including tomatoes, peppers and many bedding plants.

Snow levels in the mountains may fall as low as 4,000 to 4,500 feet and accumulations could run from 2 to 4 inches, forecasters said.

In Spokane and Coeur d’Alene, highs may reach the low 50s – well below normal for mid-May – and the lows tonight are expected to be about 29.

The cool conditions will be sharpened today by winds of 15 to 22 mph with gusts into the low 30s.

Temperatures improve on Wednesday ahead of another advancing rain storm that is expected to move quickly across the Inland Northwest Wednesday night and Thursday, allowing for another weekend warm up starting on Friday. Highs by Sunday could reach the middle 70s.

Normal high temperature for today in Spokane is 65.

At 7 a.m., temperatures were in the low to middle 40s across the region with 40 at Spokane International Airport, 42 in Pullman, 43 at Felts Field and Sandpoint and 44 in Coeur d’Alene.

One comment on this story so far. Add yours!

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  93bird on May 12 at 10:16 a.m.

  Freeze warnings in mid May? While not unheard of, the past year’s weather is not typical. According to the National Climatic Data Center, Spokane has seen a 13% increase in the number of heating degree days since March 1, and a 3% increase since last July. Unless the weather turns dramatically warmer, we can expect the departures from normal to increase. The demand for heating due to lower than normal temperatures for the same periods last year was even greater. Of course, we all know that snowfall for the previous two winters was double the usual amount. While no one should discount the possibility of global warming, we can’t overlook the empirical evidence supporting our region’s cooling climate. We should all be prepared for the prolonged costs that a colder, snowier climate bring.