Inland NW thunderstorms could fire up again this afternoon

A new round of thunderstorms is possible across the region after 2 p.m. today as a large Pacific storm moves through the Inland Northwest. Thunderstorms overnight Monday into Tuesday morning brought various amounts of rain to the region depending on where the storms were located. Thunder and lightning were continuing late this morning across the Columbia Basin in the vicinity of Moses Lake, Othello and Wilbur. Traffic cameras showed wet conditions throughout that area. Another segment of the storm was expected to move north from Oregon this afternoon across Eastern Washington and North Idaho, bringing a chance of thunderstorms later today. The larger area of low air pressure is moving out of the Pacific Ocean toward Eastern Washington and North Idaho. As it slowly tracks eastward, it is expected to bring rounds of showers, thunderstorms and steady rain. Cooler air associated with the low is expected to combine with moist air from the south to create a steady band of rain across the region on Wednesday. Highs drop from the middle 70s today to the middle 50s and lower 60s on Wednesday and Thursday as the cooler air arrives. The latest 24-hour rain reports showed 0.7 inches at Spokane International Airport through late this morning. Coeur d’Alene had little if any rain. Areas of the Columbia Basin got a soaking, including Othello at 0.67 inches, George at 0.43 inches and Odessa at 0.50 inches. Weather conditions rebound starting on Friday, but a chance of showers will persist into Saturday when daytime highs are likely to reach the lower 70s.