A third in a series of atmospheric river storms over the past several days is forecast to impact portions of the Pacific Northwest through midweek.
The frequency and intensity of these storms produced daily record rain in Bellingham, Washington, over Thanksgiving weekend, with 1.43 inches Thursday, 1.17 inches Saturday and 1.63 inches Sunday.
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (ICAO code: SEA) has recorded its wettest meteorological fall (September through November). As of Monday morning, the total was 18.91 inches, beating the fall of 2006, which had a total of 18.61 inches.
Another 2 to 4 inches of rain could hit these and other areas of northern Washington, as well as Vancouver, British Columbia, and surrounding locations. Most of the rain will occur from late Monday through early Wednesday.
Because the ground is saturated across the region from previous rain, additional precipitation could cause flooding to come back, leading to possible landslides and road closures.
Related: CN’s main link to Port of Vancouver remains closed
High-elevation snow could make travel difficult for truckers over some mountain passes, and wind gusts in some spots could range from 40 to 50 mph at times. The strongest winds will be along the coast and in the mountain passes.
Major lanes of concern
• Interstate 5 from Seattle to Bellingham.
• U.S. Highway 101 in Washington from Forks to Port Angeles.
• Trans-Canada Highway from Vancouver, British Columbia, to Skihist Provincial Park.
Other notable weather this week
Look for periods of snow and rain the first few days of the week in the Midwest and Northeast. Some of the snow could be heavy at times from Detroit to Cleveland and upstate New York.
Record high temperatures ranging from the mid-50s to lower 70s could spread across parts of the Upper Midwest, Plains and Southwest later in the week.
Click here for more FreightWaves articles by Nick Austin.
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