Pacific fronts continue to blow through area

Yet one more shot of rain and wind was expected to hit the Inland Northwest today, but forecasters said the blustery November weather should then begin to subside.

This morning’s weather once again brings a chance of snow or sleet to higher elevations around Spokane and Coeur d’Alene, but temperatures were expected to quickly rise above the freezing mark by midmorning and change any wintry mix to all rain.

“We’re going for snow levels right around 2,500 feet,” said Ron Miller, forecaster for the National Weather Service in Spokane. Most of the city of Spokane is between 1,890 and 2,300 feet in elevation.

A wind advisory was issued on Tuesday for the Spokane area from 1 p.m. today to 1 a.m. Thursday. South to southeast winds are expected to lash the area before switching to south to southwest winds later today. Sustained winds of 30 mph are forecasted, with higher gusts at times.

Today’s Pacific frontal system is expected initially to increase the 2 to 3 feet of snow being reported by the region’s ski resorts. However, several of the resorts may see a period of rain this afternoon as the storm sweeps warmer air northward.

Miller said that ski areas at Silver Mountain, Lookout Pass and Mount Spokane could see rain at their mountain summits, while Schweitzer and 49 Degrees North will have snow above 5,000 feet. Snow levels should drop following passage of a cold front later today.

Forecasters said the region’s rivers are expected to remain within their banks because snow that has accumulated in the mountains will slow any runoff.

“This is not going to be a repeat of what we had last week,” he said. Heavy rainfall in eastern Bonner County washed out two rural roadways last week, triggering a disaster declaration by Idaho’s governor, while the same storms carrying moist subtropical air sent numerous rivers over their banks in Western Washington and Oregon.

Mild weather accompanying the storms last week gave Spokane a record high temperature of 61 degrees for Nov. 6.

The first two weeks of November also brought 2.5 inches of rain to Spokane, nearly an inch more than normal for the month. Despite a dry summer and early autumn, the region has had 16 inches of precipitation for the year, or about 3 inches more than normal.

Sustained winds of 52 mph were clocked on Tuesday at Spokane International Airport, with higher gusts occurring throughout the region. Some snow was reported in lower elevations, including Deer Park, which had 3 inches on Tuesday.

Another storm on Sunday evening could brush the area from the south to be followed by a period of less active weather, according to computer forecast models.

Miller said the flow of storms off the Pacific Ocean this month is not unusual for the region. “This is still fall,” he said.