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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883
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Snow chance returns Friday morning, then rain

A state trooper checks out a slide off in the median near Barker Road on Thursday, Jan. 20, 2011, on I-90. Snow was falling heavily in North Idaho and eastern Spokane Valley Thursday morning. (Jesse Tinsley / The Spokesman-Review)
By Mike Prager mikeprager15@gmail.com(509) 459-5454
Snowfall that slickened roads this morning in the Spokane, Coeur d’Alene and Post Falls may return on Friday morning as another storm system arrives. Radar images show the precipitation moving to the north and east of urban areas, but hovering over mountain areas of the region. Sandpoint had 4 inches of snow this morning from a system that passed across the Northeast Washington mountains into North Idaho and just grazed Spokane. Earlier today, light flurries came down in Spokane, while a layer of fresh snow coated Colville, Metaline Falls, Deer Park, Loon Lake and Suncrest. Forecasters have dropped a winter weather advisory for earlier today for 1 to 2 inches of snow in Northeast Washington north of Spokane and in North Idaho from Moscow northward. Spokane was not included in the advisory. Road conditions turned slippery in Post Falls, Liberty Lake and the eastern side of Spokane Valley where slide-off accidents were occurring during the morning commute on Interstate 90 and other roadways. The chance of rain or snow diminishes tonight, but then returns on Friday when a new storm impulse arrives over the region. Precipitation in the morning on Friday should start as snow and then change to rain by 10 a.m. with a highs in Spokane and in Coeur d’Alene in the upper 30s. Forecasters this afternoon dropped their forecasted highs and lows by several degrees for Friday. Snow level near Spokane will go to 3,700 feet on Friday. Lows should be in the 20s with weekend highs in the upper 30s. The Silver Valley and nearby mountains may see an additional 1 to 2 inches of snow on Friday night where cooler temperatures are likely Sun should return over the weekend with partly sunny skies expected on Saturday with mostly sunny conditions on Sunday. Highs are expected to hover near 40 with lows near 30. Average temperatures for this time of year are 33 for highs and 22 for lows. The average temperatures have started to rebound after dropping to their lowest levels of the year during the past several weeks. Daylight is now starting to return with sunset tonight at 4:33 p.m. and sunrise on Friday at 7:30 a.m. That’s about 40 minutes more daylight since the solstice in late December. At 7 a.m. today, it was 27 at Spokane International Airport and Coeur d’Alene, 28 in downtown Spokane, 25 in Deer Park and 26 in Pullman.