Follow Meteorologist D.J. Kayser on Twitter (@dkayserwx) or on Facebook (Meteorologist D.J. Kayser).
We’ve been watching storm after storm slam into the Northwest since last week, bringing heavy rain, snow and even freezing rain at times. We’ll see this pattern continue through the next few days as more moisture continues toward the region in waves, as indicated by the precipitable water loop above, with at least three more storms possible through the end of the week – Tuesday/Wednesday, Wednesday Night/Thursday, and another into the weekend. This will bring even more rain to regions already waterlogged from the past week and heavy snow to higher elevations. We’ll have more on the forecast and additional totals in a moment, but first we’ll take a look back at totals from Monday.
Monday Rain Recap
Monday was another day of heavy rain across the Northwest, where numerous locations picked up over an inch of rain. One of those locations was Seattle, WA, which picked up 1.08″, breaking the previous record for the day. This rain led to numerous reports of flooding, rock slides and road closures across the region.
(INTERACTIVE MAP: River Levels)
Other heavy rain totals from Monday included:
- 4.72″ – Near Cougar, WA
- 2.76″ – Tillamook, OR
- 2.41″ – Troutdale, OR
- 2.39″ – Vancouver, WA
- 1.26″ – Kelso, WA
Portland – Wettest December Day On Record Monday
Another location breaking records with heavy rain on Monday was Portland, OR. Not only did they shatter the previous record for the day, but also saw their wettest December day in recorded history – breaking the previous of 2.17″ back on December 27th of 1942. They also came within two-hundredths of an inch of the second wettest day in history ever – set back in November of 1996.
(VIDEO: National Threats)
So far this December (through Monday), Portland has received 5.42 inches of rain. That is already good enough to rank as the 41st wettest December on record. They will likely continue to climb the list over the next few days, and could come close to the top five later this week if the forecast below pans out.
Rain And Snow Forecast
We continue to see wave after wave of moisture move through the Northwest over the next 48 hours, with one batch moving through today and into Wednesday, and other likely Wednesday Night into Thursday.
(VIDEO: Northwest Forecast)
Precipitation amounts could once again be quite high in some locations. Taking a look at the five day precipitation forecast, we are forecasting 7″ in spots from Washington down toward northern California.
Snow will also be a concern in the higher elevations, with potentially 3-5 feet of snow in parts of the Washington Cascades.
(CHECK OUT YOUR FORECAST: wx.aerisweather.com)
– Meteorologist D.J. Kayser
