Bundle up! Cold front moving into Tri-Cities with winter not too far behind
It’s time to dig out your fall jackets and be ready to send kids off to school in long pants as a cold front moves toward the Tri-Cities.
The high in the Tri-Cities will drop from the 70s into the mid 60s on Wednesday and then dip down to the low 60s Thursday and Friday, according to the National Weather Service.
Highs Thursday and Friday for the Tri-Cities are forecast at 62 by the weather service, with highs warming to the mid 60s over the weekend.
From 7 a.m. to 8 a.m., on Thursday the temperature is forecast at 39 to 40 degrees in the Tri-Cities
Next week could be even colder with daytime highs dropping into the 50s, according to the extended forecast of The Weather Channel.
The lows in the Tri-Cities could chill to the high 30s Wednesday and Thursday nights, according to the weather service.
However, The Weather Channel predicts colder weather with a low of 34 at the Pasco airport early Thursday morning, but no plant-damaging freezing temperatures are expected for the next two weeks.
Normal average highs for the Tri-Cities in October drop from about 73 at the start of the month to about 58 by the end of the month.
With the start of fall comes the shutoff of irrigation water across the Mid-Columbia.
The Kennewick Irrigation District’s last day of guaranteed water delivery in Sunday, Oct. 10. Some areas may have water for a few more days as crews winterize the irrigation system.
No precipitation is forecast for the Tri-Cities in the coming week, but a wet winter with lots of snow in the mountains could be coming.
Winter forecast
A La Niña winter is forecast by AccuWeather for the Pacific Northwest, but it should be weaker than last winter’s La Niña and trigger less stormy weather.
La Niña is a phenomenon that occurs when the water near the equator of the Pacific Ocean is cooler than average.
In turn, that influences the jet stream and the track that storms take when moving across North America, according to AccuWeather.
It could mean an earlier arrival of winter storms than usual, helping to end the wildfire season in the Pacific Northwest.
There is expected to be less snow than last winter in the Pacific Northwest, but enough for a healthy snowpack for ski areas.
The AccuWeather ski forecast for resorts in Washington mountains is good to excellent.
A slight chance of snow is forecast for Interstate 90 at Snoqualmie Pass on Friday morning, although precipitation could fall as rain.
In the longer term, the La Niña winter could help alleviate the drought across Washington state.
Benton and Franklin counties are experiencing drought conditions rates as “exceptional” by the U.S. Drought Monitor.
“I do feel that the drought will improve. It’s already improving in parts of Washington and northern Idaho, but it’s not going to be a drought-buster,” said AccuWeather long-range forecaster Paul Pastelok of the expected precipitation amounts this winter.
This story was originally published October 4, 2021 at 12:33 PM.