More snow, rain and chilly temperatures are on the horizon for the Seattle area.
It’s still uncertain whether fresh snowfall will lead to much accumulation this week in the Seattle area, but Puget Sound will likely see another band of snow showers Wednesday afternoon.
Reid Wolcott, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Seattle, said that the weather system could drop 1 to 3 inches of fluff.
Wolcott said Seattle has a good chance at seeing some accumulation this time, in part because the temperatures will be cooler and the band of precipitation is carrying more moisture.
Just a trace of snow was recorded at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport early Tuesday. But totals were inconsistent in the region, with a volunteer measuring 2.5 inches in Woodinville, Wolcott said.
On Tuesday afternoon, the most active wintry weather was concentrated along the Olympic Peninsula and Grays Harbor County, Wolcott said.
Cold weather advisories were remaining in effect for western Whatcom County, including Bellingham, and the San Juan Islands through 10 a.m. Wednesday.
Kayla Mazurkiewicz, also a meteorologist with the weather service, said the weather pattern is expected to continue for the next few days.
Road conditions will continue to be dangerous. Melting snow were expected to freeze overnight heading into Wednesday, with the potential to again create dangerous road conditions during the early-morning drive.
This round of frosty weather first arrived over the weekend, with scattered snow showers dusting the metro area Saturday afternoon. Since then, the snow has been hit-or-miss, with eastern and northern areas of Western Washington seeing more of the white stuff than Seattle.
Some school districts preemptively closed schools or imposed two-hour delayed starts Monday and Tuesday due to slick and icy roads.
In Seattle, it has mostly been goopy spurts of snow, mixed with rain — not quite enough for a snow day, but it has brought black ice and traffic headaches.
A semitruck crash around 4 a.m. Tuesday on I-405 stalled traffic for hours in Renton during an icy commute. More cars crashed on icy roads a few miles north on I-405, near the interchange with I-90.
Schools in Snohomish and Granite Falls in Snohomish County closed Tuesday, while neighboring districts opted to start school one or two hours late.
Blaine, Ferndale, Lynden, Meridian and Mount Baker school districts in Whatcom County — which took the brunt of the frigid temperatures and snow from the Fraser Valley outflow — closed Tuesday. After classes were canceled in Bellingham on Monday, schools reopened there Tuesday with a two-hour delay.
In King County, Auburn, Issaquah, Kent, Muckleshoot and Renton schools closed. Schools around Grays Harbor and Pacific counties also closed.
Rainy, snowy weather will continue through Thursday in the lowlands, with highs in the 30s.
Those looking for a place to warm up can visit kcrha.org/resources/severe-weather-shelter/ to find resources and open warming centers.