Heavy Snow — Lower Columbia, Oregon

2019-02-08 to 2019-02-09 · Lower Columbia, Oregon

Event narrative

Most precipitation fell as rain or a rain/snow mix at river level, but elevations above 500 feet observed more snow. CoCoRaHS observers reported around 5 inches of snow near Alston.

Wider weather episode

A low pressure system dropped south along the coast from Victoria Island. The low pressure system brought arctic air south out of Canada into the Columbia Basin, which was then funneled into the northern Willamette Valley. This system brought heavy snow to the Coast Range and the Cascade Foothills, the Columbia Gorge, and Hood River Valley. It also brought snow down to the Valley floor near the Columbia Gorge in the Portland Metro area. Other areas on the south and west side of the Portland Metro area did see some periods of lighter snow but not much if any snow accumulated on the ground.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 808863. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.