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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883
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Inland Northwest finally seeing typical autumn rains

A western gray squirrel finds a tasty snack at the expense of carved Jack-o’-lanterns on the steps of Whitworth University’s Ballard Hall on Tuesday. The second pumpkin from the left is carved with a “Lord of the Rings” theme. Find upcoming Halloween events at www.spokane7.com/calendar/. (Dan Pelle)
A western gray squirrel finds a tasty snack at the expense of carved Jack-o’-lanterns on the steps of Whitworth University’s Ballard Hall on Tuesday. The second pumpkin from the left is carved with a “Lord of the Rings” theme. Find upcoming Halloween events at www.spokane7.com/calendar/. (Dan Pelle)Buy a print of this photo
By Mike Prager mikeprager15@gmail.com(509) 459-5454

Say goodbye to the warm, sunny days of early autumn.

Following Monday’s high of 70, those days have been replaced by wet, blustery weather typical of this time of year.

“It’s safe to say we’ve had a pattern change,” said Matt Fugazzi, forecaster for the National Weather Service in Spokane.

Spokane International Airport reported a half inch of rain through Thursday afternoon. Mountain areas in Pend Oreille, Stevens and Ferry counties had more than an inch of rain.

In Western Washington, at least two funnel clouds were reported on Friday, and photos by eyewitnesses showed that they may have touched down to become tornadoes. Damage was reported in Longview. The West Side and the Cascades were drenched with rain over the past two days.

Temperatures in the Inland Northwest are going to remain relatively mild for this time of year, in part because of a potent southwest storm flow, which is expected to usher a warm front across the region tonight. Highs should reach the middle 60s on Saturday.

A trailing cold front Saturday night is going to bring the next shot of steady rain and a potential for gusty winds Sunday. Then, temperatures will trend downward.

The first mountain snow in the fall is always a sign of the changing season. That has yet to happen, but it could by Monday when the snow level is expected to be at 4,400 to 5,000 feet in elevation.

After that, a new storm arrives on Monday night and Tuesday with potential for another soaking rain. Computer models indicate that remnant moisture from Hurricane Ana, which has been drifting at sea for several days, could get drawn into the low-pressure area.

Fugazzi said the overall trend is for temperatures to fluctuate up and down during the coming week. In Spokane, normal temperatures for this time of year are 55 for a high and 35 for a low.

October has been unusually warm. Through Wednesday, the average of highs and lows was 6.1 degrees above normal.

Spokane and adjacent urban areas have not yet seen frost, although outlying locations did get to 32 degrees or colder at the start of the month.

Locally, vegetable gardens have produced later-than-normal harvests of tomatoes, beans and other tender crops. Summer annual flowers are still in bloom, although muted by the shorter days.

There are no freezing temperatures in the forecast through at least Thursday morning. The last time frost held off until November was in 2005, when it arrived on Nov. 2.

The record for latest first frost is Nov. 11, 1944.