Heavy Snow — Western Columbia River Gorge, Oregon

2019-02-10 to 2019-02-12 · Western Columbia River Gorge, Oregon

Event narrative

Exact amounts of snow and ice are unknown due to lack of reports. One spotter report from Stevenson, WA had 7.5 inches of snow in a 12 hour period. Another report from the public in Stevenson, WA had 10 inches of snow in a 24 hour period. Heavy snow and ice closed I-84 in both directions east of Milepost 23 due to heavy snow and ice which caused a crash involving multiple tractor-trailers.

Wider weather episode

Back-to-back low pressure systems dropping south along the coast of British Columbia and Washington brought cold air south into NW Oregon as well as plenty of moisture. Locations in the Columbia Gorge and Hood River Valley saw 1 to 2 feet of snow. At lower elevations, a near stationary frontal boundary the night of the 11th into the morning of the 12th dropped several inches of rain over portions of Washington, Columbia, Tillamook and Yamhill Counties.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 810023. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.