Light snow possible tonight, Wednesday

The snow that’s on the ground this morning is likely all you’ll see as far as a white Christmas, although the National Weather Service said another, lighter round of snow could arrive around sundown.

The Inland Northwest quickly shed from roadways much of a Sunday night storm that dropped 1 to 5 inches across the region.

High temperatures above freezing in the Spokane area on Monday allowed crews to clear streets and highways quickly. Travel conditions had improved by midmorning and mountain passes were open.

Today’s weather should be mostly cloudy with a high of 32, but only a 30 percent chance of snow after 10 a.m.

Another 1 to 2 inches is possible tonight, followed by up to 1 or 2 more inches on Wednesday.

After that, snow chances drop dramatically, leading to several days where travel should be relatively free of snow and ice, although snow showers are possible each day through Sunday. The storm track is moving southward into Oregon and California, giving the break in heavier storms.

Highs in Spokane through the weekend will be near 30,+ with lows in the 20s under mostly cloudy skies.

On Monday morning, Interstate 90 near Spokane International Airport was foggy and the air temperature was below freezing much of the day, creating difficult driving conditions

The city of Spokane reported that the heaviest accumulations were on the far North Side and the upper South Hill.

U.S. Highway 2 from Leavenworth to Stevens Pass remained closed Monday for the third day after heavy snow brought down trees, causing two deaths and several injuries starting on Friday.

Around the region, snowfall amounts were variable. Post Falls had 2 inches. Moscow had 4 inches. Near Airway Heights, weather observers reported 4 and 5 inches at two locations. Mountain areas had even more snow.