Blowing dust advisory issued for Columbia Basin

The National Weather Service this afternoon has issued a blowing dust advisory for the upper Columbia Basin on Saturday. Winds gusting to 40 mph are predicted in the basin on Saturday when a cold front driven by a new low pressure system crosses the region. The dust could reduce visibility and create hazardous driving conditions along Interstate 90 and other highways in the area, forecasters said. Blowing dust is also likely in the Spokane region when winds pick up after 11 a.m. and continue until about 9 p.m. Winds should peak at about 30 mph on Saturday evening in Spokane. Today brought one of the last warm summer days of the season as a kick off to the Labor Day weekend. The temperature at 3 p.m. was 84 at Spokane International Airport. Forecasters said the fair weather is going south starting on Saturday when a high of 78 is predicted. The low pressure system driving the cooler, windy weather will move across the region over the weekend, causing high temperatures to drop to the upper 60s. Forecasters have dropped the chances of showers from the forecast this weekend through Monday in the Spokane area. Coeur d’Alene has a 20 percent chance of showers on Sunday. Mountain areas to the north have chances of showers Sunday and Monday. Temperatures should rebound into the 70s on Tuesday through Thursday in Spokane and Coeur d’Alene.