PORTLAND, Ore. — Temperatures are expected to drop below freezing later this week and as KGW chief meteorologist Matt Zaffino put it, “it’s going to get Portland-cold.” That is a certainty. But there's one question on the minds of many people who live in the region: Will that cold weather bring snow? It’s possible but more specific details, such as when and how much, are far from certain.
Let’s start with when. Zaffino said cold air in British Columbia will head south and arrive Thursday in the Willamette Valley, Portland metro area and Southwest Washington. There will also be strong east winds. He said that cold air will hang through the weekend before being pushed out by warmer southern winds on Monday, Feb. 15.
“We will very likely see at least a little snow,” Zaffino said. “Amounts still uncertain.”
One model shows about a half-inch of snow in Portland Thursday, another half-inch Friday and a third half-inch Sunday into Monday, for a grand total of 1.5 inches of snow over four days.
“That’s fairly reasonable and it’s really quite conservative,” Zaffino said. “There are other models that are a little more wild than that and we’ll have to wait and see which one pans out.”
Zaffino broke down three possible cases to give you an idea about the range of potential scenarios.
- Snowiest case: Several inches Thursday through Saturday.
- Driest case: A few flurries.
- Most likely case: Trace to two inches.
Zaffino said the snow forecast will become more clear later this week.
“But now is a good time to get ready for very cold and windy weather, at least,” he said. (Story continues below)
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If it snows later this week, it will be the second time this winter the Portland metro area is treated to flurries. Two weeks ago, a system dropped varying amounts of snow, from a trace to 6 inches, across the Willamette Valley, Portland metro area and Southwest Washington.
