Last 70+ degree day in Seattle is in rearview mirror as rain strikes region

Rain is on tap for Seattle and the Puget Sound region for the rest of the week, with the latest weather pattern ushering in cool, wet autumn weather starting Thursday.

Thursday through Sunday all feature days with a more than 50% chance of rain in Seattle and surrounding areas, according to The Weather Channel. Highs for that stretch of days do not surpass 60 degrees. The following work week may feature a break in the rain, but the stormy weather returns Sunday, Oct. 19.

The turn the weather is having in the second half of the week is quite a pivot from Monday and Tuesday’s weather in Seattle, which featured highs of nearly 70 with sunny skies. Tuesday may very well be the last 70-degree day in Seattle for the year. The likelihood of a 70-degree day rapidly drops once the first 10 days of October have passed, according to Brian MacMillan, the chief meteorologist at FOX 13 Seattle.

The onslaught of rain will hopefully mitigate the damage an abnormally dry year had on Washington.

With the exception of March, the winter and spring months had well below-average rainfall for the year heading into summer. The Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) was nearly five inches below normal for the year through May.

That dry trend continued through much of the summer. Only August had more than the usual rainfall for the month by just more than a tenth of an inch. By the end of September, SEA had finished more than seven inches of rain below average for its annual precipitation thus far.

First snow in the mountains

The turn to autumnal weather also means that, at 5,000 feet in elevation, the first snow of the year will begin in the mountains, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).

Stevens Pass and the North Cascades are expected to receive some snow, potentially three to six inches at 5,000 feet, starting this weekend. Snoqualmie Pass can also expect to see some snow.

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