Fog blankets Western Washington on the first day of winter
Dec 21, 2023, 5:49 AM | Updated: 9:40 am
Dense fog in Edmonds overnight. (Photo: Bill Kaczaraba/MyNorthwest)
(Photo: Bill Kaczaraba/MyNorthwest)
It’s as if the fog is taunting drivers across Western Washington.
For the fourth day in a row, foggy conditions are impacting the Thursday morning commute.
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For almost a week now, Seattle has been making its best impression of San Francisco. The conditions have been widespread Thursday morning.
Dense fog advisories have been reissued for several areas through noon Thursday. Visibilities continue to drop to a quarter of a mile (even less than a quarter for some areas).
Sunset shot from the Space Needle Panocam shows the fog covering the Downtown Seattle area.#wawx pic.twitter.com/SRJvLsz4OV
— NWS Seattle (@NWSSeattle) December 21, 2023
Fog advisories last through noon Thursday, according to the National Weather Service (NWS) in Seattle.
NWS said that fog is caused by light winds, a stable low-level air mass (inversion/poor mixing), recent wetting rains (moist low-level air mass) and clearing skies.
Up in Snohomish County, “dense fog” was clearly impacting commuters’ visibility.
Definitely some dense fog on I-5 near Marysville pic.twitter.com/ADJswJJ3GE
— Jonathan Pulley (@WhidbeyWXGuy) December 21, 2023
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Residents traveling to Sea-Tac Airport (SEA) also described foggy conditions.
Had to pick up our son from the airport. This is what it looked like pic.twitter.com/ZrfdXExWho
— Susan Brown 🇺🇸🌈🌈 (@Seahawksrock) December 21, 2023
The Washington Department of Transportation (WSDOT) reminds drivers to use low beams or fog lights if you have them. High beams don’t help you to see better and are dangerous for oncoming traffic.
The fog will fade by midday followed by clouds and highs in the 40s.
