Highlights

Very wet weather is arriving now, and rain will fall the majority of the time through Saturday morning.

Some minor flooding is expected, but nothing close to the extent we saw back in December.

Steady rain will keep temps stuck in the mid 40s to low 50s. I don’t see us warming up above 55 degrees until Monday afternoon. It’s going to be a chilly several days!

Details

The heaviest periods of rain for the Salem and the mid valley area:

1.) Wednesday afternoon through Thursday evening.

2.) Friday night through early Saturday morning before drying out Saturday afternoon.

Additional rainstorm details

Keep in mind that the time frames mentioned above are the heaviest periods of rain. Rain is likely at any point now through early afternoon Saturday. Take a look at the estimated precip totals through Saturday. Over 3 inches for Salem, but “only” one inch down in Eugene. Portland is looking at over 4 inches of rain.

Some localized areas of flooding in the usual flood prone locations is possible. No major flooding is expected at this time here in the mid Willamette Valley, but pay attention to any new warnings or updates. This much rain in just a few days can cause problems.

Cascades

The snow level is low right now, and heavy snow has begun to fall in the Cascades.

Heavy snow continues through mid day Wednesday. A warm front causes the snow level to rise above pass level for Hoodoo and Willamette Pass by noon Wednesday.

The following forecast is for the pass going to Hoodoo (highways 20 and 22). Mount Hood will likely stay colder for a longer period of time this week which means more snow and lower snow levels on Hood. On the flip side, Willamette Pass and points south will most likely stay either as rain, or mostly dry as the brunt of this storm focuses on northwest Oregon.

• Wed AM: Snowy
• Wed PM: Rainy
• Thu: Rain/snow mix. Snowy roads at times, but only near the top of the passes.
• Friday and Friday evening: Rainy
• Sat: Rain turning back into snow early. Dry evening.

That’s all for now. Plan on rain returning Sunday afternoon. Rainier the further north you go, so Portland can count on a rainy Sunday, Salem will likely see some rain, but Eugene and points south could see a dry Sunday. Something to keep in mind.

Have a safe rest of your week!