Heavy Snow — Northeast Blue Mountains, Washington

2011-02-22 to 2011-02-24 · Northeast Blue Mountains, Washington

Event narrative

A spotter four miles west of Anatone received twenty-two inches of snow over the three day period.

Wider weather episode

A very cold upper-level trough settled into the Pacific Northwest on the 21st and 22nd of February. A combination of upsloping flow and several smaller disturbances embedded within the trough utilized the deep instability in place resulting in several rounds of heavy snow, especially across the Northeast and Blue Mountains. Snowfall amounts over the three day period in these mountain zones ranged from one to three feet. Several rounds of heavy snow also impacted the upper Columbia Basin and Spokane area mainly on the 23rd and 24th but due to the highly convective nature of the snowfall, storm total snowfall amounts varied from four to fourteen inches. On the evening of the 23rd, a strong arctic front moved into the region. A combination of heavy snow bands developing along the front and strong northeast winds behind the front resulted in blizzard conditions for several hours across Spokane County.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 278904. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.