Ice Storm — Western Whatcom County, Washington

2022-12-22 to 2022-12-24 · Western Whatcom County, Washington

Event narrative

An ice storm caused major impacts across Western Whatcom County on Dec 23. Some reports around the area included: 0.2 inches of ice around Glacier, and numerous reports around Bellingham, including ice coating planes at the airport and 0.38 inches of ice around downtown, as well as some reports around the remainder of the city around 0.2 inches. The most ice was reported out of Lynden with 0.5 inches.

Wider weather episode

After a series of snow events in the lowlands and mountains of western Washington, a system off the Pacific brought a modifying airmass towards the area right before the Christmas holiday. Warmer Pacific air was able to overrun lingering cold air very near the surface, producing a warm layer of classic characteristic of a freezing rain profile. As such, measurable ice accumulation led to hazardous impacts across the area, most noticeably to roadways and travel.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 1073543. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.