Currently, the Ferndale area is covered with between 2 to 6 inches of snow along with a layer of ice from yesterday’s freezing rain. Temperatures have been holding relatively steady just below freezing, 32°, since Friday morning.
Looking forward, two weather advisories have been issued by the National Weather Service (NWS) Seattle office that will be in effect into Monday.
A High Wind Advisory has replaced a High Wind Watch issued earlier for western Whatcom County and the San Juan Islands (areas in the path of the Fraser Valley outflow). The advisory begins 4pm this afternoon until noon tomorrow, Monday. Sustained northeast winds from 25 to 35mph with gusts to 55mph are forecast. That is a slight reduction in wind speeds from the previously issued high wind watch.
A Winter Weather Advisory has been issued for all of the western Washington lowlands between 4pm today, Sunday, and 4pm Monday. The advisory says to expect 1 to 3 inches of snowfall. The focus of this advisory appears to be mostly in the southern Puget Sound area as rain is expected to transition to snow. The chance of precipitation for the Ferndale area during the advisory period begins at 60%, decreasing to 40% by Monday.
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Click for more informationThe Environment Canada (EC) forecast for areas just north of the border and in the Fraser Valley outflow path call for a high probability of snow after midnight and into Monday morning. EC is more conservative about the winds than NWS, forecasting winds up to only 30mph.
Weather Underground BestForecast tends to agree with Environment Canada but with only a 40% chance snowfall between 3am and 9am Monday morning and putting the high winds between 9pm and 6am.
An expected brief rise into the upper 30s today may or may not be enough to melt ice in the trees before the strong winds arrive. Trees coated in ice can be more vulnerable in a windstorm, increasing the risk for power outages due to branches and trees falling into power lines.
After today’s climb, temperatures are expected to remain near or below freezing through Wednesday when a warm and very wet system is forecast to move into the area for a couple days.