December to be colder than usual in Tri-Cities

The cold weather forecast for next week may be just a sample of what’s to come.

The National Weather Service is predicting that December will be colder than usual this year, after an unusually warm November.

Kennewick has not enjoyed a November as mild since 1899. The high average temperature last month of 49.4 degrees matched the record that has stood for 117 years, according to the weather service.

It was the warmest November on record in Pasco and at the Hanford Meteorological Station. Pasco has kept daily records only for a few decades and Hanford back to 1945.

The first full week of December is expected to be exceptionally cold, and possibly snowy, in the Tri-Cities with lows falling to 15 degrees Tuesday night, according to the weather service. Highs are expected to be in the 30 to 35 degree ranged from Monday through at least Friday.

Normal highs in December in the Tri-Cities drop from about 43 at the start of the month to about 39 at the end of the month. Lows drop from about 31 to about 27.

December could be a little wetter than usual, according to the weather service. Normal precipitation is 1.12 inches in December in the Tri-Cities.

Any precipitation in the coming week could fall as snow because of the cold temperatures. Snow is possible Monday evening and night, followed by a slight chance of snow Tuesday. The weather service forecast for Thursday and Friday also calls for a chance of snow.

No snow has been recorded yet this season in the Tri-Cities or at the Hanford met station, because of the warm November.

The average temperature in Kennewick was 6.3 degrees above normal, boosted by days like Nov. 13, which had a high of 70. Temperatures fell below freezing on just one day, when a low of 31 was recorded on Nov. 29.

The weather at the Pasco airport was cooler, with a low of 25 recorded on Nov. 29.

The Hanford Meteorology Station, which compiles daily temperature records, found none for November, according to initial information.

The fall months of September through November were wetter than usual in the Mid-Columbia.

The Hanford Meteorology Service reported it was the fifth wettest fall on record, with 3.24 inches of precipitation recorded compared to usual precipitation of 1.76 inches. September and November were drier than normal, but October was unusually wet.

In the Tri-Cities precipitation for November ranged from 0.29 inches recorded in Kennewick to 0.54 inches at the Pasco airport. Kennewick precipitation for the year now totals 8.62 inches, which is 2.02 inches above normal, according to the weather service.

The peak wind gust in the Tri-Cities in November was 42 mph, as recorded in Kennewick on Nov. 15. At the Hanford meteorology station it was 44 mph on Nov. 27.

This story was originally published December 3, 2016 at 8:03 PM with the headline "December to be colder than usual in Tri-Cities."