Snow, Cold Expected To March On February Sunshine Gives Way To Lionlike Reminder It’s Still Winter

Brace yourself for more winter weather woes.

Three inches of snow fell in Spokane Saturday afternoon - just 1.1 inches less than normal for the entire month of March.

“We had March before February,” said meteorologist Mark Strobin, referring to the sunny weather last month before snowshowers hit the area March 1.

The Inland Northwest isn’t likely to get any sunbreaks until Friday, said Strobin, who works for the National Weather Service at the Spokane International Airport.

The forecast shows little else but snowshowers, rain and cloudy skies. Average temperatures should be in the low to mid-30s.

“Basically what you see is what you’ll get,” Strobin said.

While snow accumulation this month is expected to be higher than normal, it’s still nowhere near last March’s amount. At this time last year, a foot of snow had already fallen, Strobin said.

On Saturday, snow and freezing conditions caused several accidents in the region, as well as snowslides over Snoqualmie Pass.

In North Idaho, state police ran a snowy marathon as accident calls kept piling up all day.

“We’re just running from place to place,” a weary dispatcher said. “They’re everywhere … all five northern counties are just slick.”

Just as she said that, another call came in. “Slide-offs, spin-outs, accidents. You name ‘em, we’ve got ‘em.”

There were no major injuries.

At Snoqualmie Pass, both east and westbound lanes were closed early Saturday after snowslides swept up some vehicles. The pass was expected to be open early this morning.

, DataTimes MEMO: The outlook The forecast shows little else but snowshowers, rain and cloudy skies. Average temperatures should be in the low to mid-30s.