Blizzard — Western Columbia Gorge, Washington

2021-02-11 to 2021-02-12 · Western Columbia Gorge, Washington

Event narrative

Strong winds and heavy snow shut down I-84 east of Troutdale. This was a transition event, from blizzard to winter storm to freezing rain. Mark Nelsen (KPTV Chief Met) reported 15 inches of snow total, followed by 0.75 of ice. Sustained winds of 30-45 mph with gusts 60-80 mph were reported for 12-24 hours (or more), along with heavy snow reducing visibility to near zero during the height of the wind/snow portion of the event. I-84 finally reopened the morning of the 14th as snow decreased and changed to a brief period of freezing rain.

Wider weather episode

A deep upper trough drove an arctic airmass into southwest Washington. As multiple Pacific fronts moved over the area, a major elevation winter storm with heavy snow and freezing rain occurred over a multi-day period. This was a major, widespread, multi-faceted winter storm that caused major problems across the forecast area, even (and especially) in the lowlands.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 946440. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.