Hopefully everyone in Clark County soaked up plenty of sunshine on Thursday, because there’s snow in the forecast.
But the National Weather Service says it won’t be anything like it was in January.
A weak weather disturbance from the northwest will be moving through the area Friday, bringing with it lots of rain and a possibility of snow. The high temperatures are expected to reach 43 degrees in Vancouver, with a low of 32 degrees that night.
“If we get anything, even if it sticks, it’s not going to stay around long. The ground is warm — relatively speaking,” Andy Bryant, a hydrologist at the weather service, said.
Bryant said coastal communities are more likely than most to get any lingering snow. East of the Coast Range, things won’t be so bad, he said.
“We’ve been looking at the potential for accumulating up to an inch of snow in parts of Clark County,” he said on Thursday. “Right now it seems less likely — maybe a dusting.”
On Saturday, patchy fog is expected to settle over Clark County, but the sun will burn through the mist and shine through clouds. The temperature is expected be at or near 45 degrees in Vancouver for the day.
Still, there’s a 30 percent chance of rain after 10 p.m., and the temperature will drop to 33 degrees.
The rains will likely return on Sunday with a possibly of snowflakes blending into those showers.
“It’s all pretty low impact,” Bryant said. “Other than looking out the window and getting excited at seeing snowflakes falling, it’s not going to stick around, which a lot of people are probably excited about.”
So far, this February has had 9.94 inches of precipitation — just a little short of Vancouver’s rainiest February on record. With less than a week in the month remaining, its anybody’s guess if this year will top the list.
“It’s going to be close, we’re a little over half an inch shy” of breaking the record, Bryant said. “But if it’s going to be this crummy, we might as well break some records.”
With spring less than a month away, this could be the last time snow is in the forecast. But then again, it’s projected to stay cold over the next 10 days, and this winter has been full of surprises.
