As advertised, cold Canadian air has spread into the North Sound with temperatures well below freezing. On Sunday, it mingled with moisture producing widespread snow with amounts ranging from a few inches to at least 6 inches. On Monday morning, Arlington dipped to just 3 degrees above zero. Now that the cold air is here, what’s next?
This frigid air will stick around this week with some sunshine at times. Toward the end of this week, high temperatures will crack the freezing mark with some limited thawing. But nighttime temperatures will again drop below freezing to refreeze any melting on roadways, sidewalks, and more.
The overall weather pattern now involves a storm track moving southeast parallel to the British Columbia coast. The next system embedded in this flow will track into Oregon Tuesday morning with the main threat of snow well south of the North Sound. The following weather system is anticipated to arrive Thursday and this one will likely produce some additional snow across the North Sound.
Temperatures will likely rise above freezing for a bit on Thursday together with the snow. New snow amounts may range from an additional 2 to 4 inches, but stay tuned as the details of this weather system get fine-tuned during the next few days.
Looking further ahead, it appears this cold weather pattern will continue into the New Year. There will likely be some days when temperatures rise above freezing, but there will also be periods with the threat of more snow and snow levels remaining quite low.
During this cold weather period, be sure to monitor the forecast. For your site-specific local North Sound forecast, visit the everettpost.com weather page and click on your community. You can also listen to your local NOAA Weather Radio station at 162.55 MHz or 162.425 MHz for the latest from the National Weather Service.
In case you were not aware, county ordinance says sidewalks are to be cleared within 24 hours after the snow stops. If you need to drive, have chains, a snow shovel, and kitty litter in case you get stuck or roads are temporarily closed, along with plenty of supplies inside your vehicle. Also have at least a half tank of gas and clear all snow off your vehicle before hitting the road. And be sure to slow down, drive cautiously, and leave plenty of following distance.
On the bright side, enjoy the snow and know that days are getting longer – summer is coming!
