191  
FOUS30 KWBC 211855  
QPFERD  
 
EXCESSIVE RAINFALL DISCUSSION  
NWS WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER COLLEGE PARK MD  
155 PM EST FRI FEB 21 2025  
 
DAY 1  
VALID 16Z FRI FEB 21 2025 - 12Z SAT FEB 22 2025  
 
THE PROBABILITY OF RAINFALL EXCEEDING FLASH FLOOD GUIDANCE IS LESS  
THAN 5 PERCENT.  
 
COOK/ORAVEC  
 
DAY 2  
VALID 12Z SAT FEB 22 2025 - 12Z SUN FEB 23 2025  
 
...THERE IS A MARGINAL RISK OF EXCESSIVE RAINFALL FOR MUCH OF  
WESTERN WASHINGTON STATE AND COASTAL OREGON...  
 
19Z UPDATE: ONLY MINOR CHANGES TO THE INHERITED MARGINAL RISK, WITH  
THE REASONING DESCRIBED BELOW STILL ON TRACK.  
 
CHENARD  
   
..PREVIOUS DISCUSSION  
 
NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES MADE TO THE PREVIOUS MARGINAL RISK ACROSS  
COASTAL SECTIONS OF OREGON, WASHINGTON AND IN THE UPSLOPE OF THE  
WASHINGTON CASCADES AND NORTHERN OREGON CASCADES. THE BEGINNING OF  
A TWO DAY ATMOSPHERIC RIVER EVENT ON TAP AS BROAD WEST  
SOUTHWESTERLY MID TO UPPER LEVEL FLOW IS ESTABLISHED ACROSS THE  
NORTHEAST PACIFIC TOWARD THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST. PW ANOMALIES  
EXPECTED TO RISE TO 2 TO 3+ STANDARD DEVIATIONS ABOVE THE MEAN BY  
SATURDAY AFTERNOON WITH THE LEAD SHORTWAVE MOVING TOWARD THE PAC NW  
COAST AND CONTINUE AT THAT LEVEL INTO SUNDAY MORNING. STRONG  
850-700 MB MOISTURE FLUX, ANOMALIES 2 TO 4+ STANDARD DEVIATIONS  
ABOVE THE MEAN EXPECTED IN THE ANOMALOUS PW AXIS, MAX IVT VALUES  
600-800 KG/M/S. THIS WILL SUPPORT HOURLY RAINFALL RATES OF .50"+  
AND WIDESPREAD TOTALS OF 1-2"+ AND MAX TOTALS OF 3-5"+ IN FAVORED  
TERRAIN REGIONS. SNOW LEVELS WILL BE VERY HIGH DAY 2 ACROSS THE  
PAC NW, WITH MUCH OF THE PRECIPITATION FALLING AS RAIN. THIS HEAVY  
RAIN, COMBINED WITH SNOW MELT WILL SUPPORT ISOLATED RUNOFF ISSUES.  
PRECIPITATION HAS BEEN BELOW AVERAGE OVER THE PAST MONTH OVER THE  
PAC NW, WHICH SHOULD MITIGATE ANY WIDESPREAD RUNOFF ISSUES DAY 1.  
 
ORAVEC  
 
DAY 3  
VALID 12Z SUN FEB 23 2025 - 12Z MON FEB 24 2025  
 
...THERE IS A MARGINAL RISK OF EXCESSIVE RAINFALL FOR MUCH OF  
WESTERN WASHINGTON STATE AND OREGON AND NORTHERN IDAHO INTO  
NORTHWEST MONTANA...  
 
19Z UPDATE: MADE A MODEST EXPANSION OF BOTH MARGINAL RISK AREAS.  
WITH 48 HOUR RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 3-6" (LOCALLY HIGHER) IN THE  
TERRAIN, AND 1-3" IN VALLEY LOCATIONS, OPTED TO BROADEN THE  
MARGINAL RISK OVER WESTERN WA AND OR. WHEN COMBINING THE DURATION  
AND STRENGTH OF THE IVT THIS IS APPROACHING STRONG ATMOSPHERIC  
RIVER LEVELS...WHICH VERIFY AT SLIGHT RISK LEVELS ABOUT HALF THE  
TIME. HOWEVER, GIVEN THE BROAD AND PROLONGED NATURE OF THE EVENT,  
HARD TO PIN DOWN A TARGETED SLIGHT RISK AT THIS POINT, AND THE  
DRIER ANTECEDENT CONDITIONS GOING INTO THE EVENT MAY HELP KEEP  
IMPACTS AT THE MARGINAL LEVEL. NONETHELESS WILL CONTINUE TO  
MONITOR, AND EITHER WAY AT LEAST SOME FLOODING ISSUES ARE EXPECTED.  
 
RAINFALL TOTALS HAVE TRENDED UP ALONG THE CENTRAL GULF COAST.  
STRONG DYNAMICS WILL LIKELY RESULT IN A SWATH OF MODERATE TO  
LOCALLY HEAVY RAINFALL, ALTHOUGH EVEN THE STRONGER AND FURTHER  
NORTH GFS FAILS TO BRING NOTABLE INSTABILITY INLAND. THUS STILL  
THINKING RAINFALL RATES WILL NOT BE HIGH ENOUGH TO JUSTIFY ADDING A  
RISK AREA IN THE ERO...SO WILL CONTINUE WITHOUT AN AREA DEPICTED.  
 
CHENARD  
   
..PREVIOUS DISCUSSION  
 
THE ATMOSPHERIC RIVER EVENT THAT STARTED DAY 2 INTO THE PACIFIC  
NORTHWEST WILL CONTINUE INTO DAY 3 AS ADDITIONAL HEIGHT FALLS  
EMBEDDED IN THE BROAD WEST SOUTHWEST MID TO UPPER LEVEL FLOW ACROSS  
THE NORTHEAST PACIFIC MOVE TOWARD THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST.  
NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES TO THE PLUME OF ANOMALOUS PW VALUES AND  
ANOMALOUS 850-700 MB MOISTURE FLUX ANOMALIES IMPACTING THE PAC NW  
DAY 3, WITH VALUES 2-4+ STANDARD DEVIATIONS ABOVE THE MEAN  
PERSISTING ALONG WITH MAX IVT VALUES OF 600-800 KG/M/S. THIS WILL  
SUPPORT ANOTHER DAY OF WIDESPREAD HEAVY RAINFALL TOTALS OF 1-2"+  
AND MAX TOTALS IN THE 3-5"+ RANGE IN THE FAVORED TERRAIN REGIONS.  
SNOW LEVELS AGAIN WILL REMAIN HIGH ACROSS MUCH OF THE PAC NW DAY 3  
WITH MUCH OF THE PRECIP AGAIN FALLING AS RAIN. WITH WIDESPREAD TWO  
DAY TOTALS IN THE 3-5"+ RANGE AND MAX TOTALS 6-10" IN FAVORED  
TERRAIN REGIONS, INCREASING SOIL MOISTURE AND STREAM FLOW VALUES  
WILL INCREASE THE RISK OF FLOODING.  
 
A MARGINAL RISK AREA WAS ADDED INLAND ACROSS PORTIONS OF NORTHERN  
IDAHO INTO NORTHWEST MONTANA. THE ANOMALOUS PW VALUES PUSHING INTO  
THE PAC NW DAY 2 WILL MOVE INTO THE NORTHERN ROCKIES DAY 3, WITH  
VALUES 2-3+ STANDARD DEVIATIONS ABOVE THE MEAN. SIMILAR TO AREAS  
ACROSS THE PAC NW, SNOW LEVELS WILL BE VERY HIGH DAY 3 WITH MUCH OF  
THE PRECIP FALLING AS RAIN . TWO DAY PRECIP TOTALS OF 1-3"  
POSSIBLE ACROSS NORTHERN IDAHO INTO NORTHWEST MONTANA, COMBINED  
WITH SNOW MELT WILL SUPPORT ISOLATED RUNOFF CONDITIONS DEVELOPING.  
 
ORAVEC  
 
DAY 1 THREAT AREA: HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/QPF/94EPOINTS.TXT  
DAY 2 THREAT AREA: HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/QPF/98EPOINTS.TXT  
DAY 3 THREAT AREA: HTTPS://WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/QPF/99EPOINTS.TXT  
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