Heavy Snow — Cascades of Snohomish and King Counties, Washington

2021-12-22 to 2021-12-26 · Cascades of Snohomish and King Counties, Washington

Event narrative

Snow began to fall in the Central Cascades during the late evening hours of Dec 22, with several inches of new snow reported at both Stevens and Snoqualmie Pass, but it wasn't until 24th when much heavier snow began. On December 24, 12 inches of new snow was received in a 12 hour period at Stevens Pass. Steady snow then continued through the 26th before then tapering off.

Although Snoqualmie Pass received a prolonged period of snowfall during these events, there was not a specific period of time where snowfall amounts met or exceeded winter storm criteria. For this prolonged event, Stevens Pass received more snowfall than Snoqualmie Pass.

Wider weather episode

A series of storm systems amidst a much colder airmass over the Pacific Northwest yielded a long duration mountain snow event, affecting both the Cascades and the Olympics.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 998620. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.