If you thought Ski to Sea was wet, you ain’t seen nothing yet. Bellingham could see up to two inches of rainfall between Sunday and Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service.
Because of a late-season atmospheric river crossing into western Washington, the southwest Olympics and central Cascades will be primarily impacted by the rainy weather.
Portions of Whatcom County and Skagit County could get between an inch to two inches of rain, while the mountains could receive between four to five inches of rain, said Maddie Kristell, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service. Typically, the average rainfall amount for western Washington for the whole month of June is an inch.
The heaviest rainfall is expected Sunday night into Monday morning, Kristell said. Rain will continue through Tuesday, with another possible chance of moisture between Wednesday and Thursday.
“It certainly doesn’t happen often,” Kristell said. “We are keeping an eye on possible daily rainfall records that may occur. We’ll have to just wait and see what those totals look like once we’re in it.”
The rainfall could impact water flows on rivers in the area. Currently, the NWS forecast for the Nooksack River at the Ferndale meter remains below the action and minor flooding category.
After the rain, Bellingham will swing to another extreme of dry, warm weather. By the end of next week, temperatures could rise up to 80 degrees in some of the valleys.
June-uary weekend forecast
Friday night: Cloudy with a low around 51. 50% chance of rain after 2 a.m.. Southwest wind 6 to 8 mph.
Saturday: Rain likely before 11 a.m. with chance of showers after 11 a.m. Mostly cloudy with a high near 65. Chance of precipitation around 70% with less than a tenth of an inch of new precipitation expected.
Saturday night: Mostly cloudy with a low around 51. Slight chance of showers.
Sunday: Rain after 11 a.m. High near 61 with winds between 9 to 14 mph. New precipitation amounts between a quarter and half an inch possible.
Sunday night: Rain. Low near 52. New precipitation amounts between three quarters and one inch possible.
Monday: Showers with thunderstorms possible after 11 a.m.. High near 60.
Monday night: Showers before 11 p.m., then rain after 11 p.m. Cloudy, low near 49.
Tuesday: Rain. Mostly cloudy with a high near 61.
Tuesday night: Rain likely. Mostly cloudy with a low near 52.
Annie Todd is CDN’s criminal justice/enterprise reporter; reach her at annietodd@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 130.
