Thunderstorms could hit Seattle area Tuesday night
May 12, 2026, 3:46 PM | Updated: 3:47 pm
A view of Seattle is seen by ferry en route to Bainbridge Island in Seattle, Washington. (Photo: John Moore, Getty Images)
(Photo: John Moore, Getty Images)
Thunderstorms could hit the Seattle area Tuesday night, but they aren’t expected to last long.
There’s a low-pressure system out over the Pacific right now, and it’s on track to come ashore in Oregon late Tuesday into Wednesday, meteorologist Scott Sistek, who runs Emerald City Weather Blog, explained in a post.
Some forecast models predict the Seattle area could catch the effects of the storm Tuesday afternoon into Tuesday evening, while others say it could happen overnight.
Sistek said there are better chances the storm will hit the southern and central Cascades and southern Washington. However, he noted April and May are typically thunderstorm season in Seattle, so the weather event wouldn’t be unusual.
Sistek said this week’s storms don’t appear to be intense and likely won’t stick around for long, but reminded people to stay vigilant and head inside if they hear thunder.
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Thunderstorm chances wind down Wednesday, but rain lingers into weekend
He said the chance of thunderstorms winds down Wednesday afternoon, but rain will linger.
The National Weather Service (NWS) is forecasting rain Wednesday morning before 11 a.m., followed by mostly cloudy skies the rest of the day. Wednesday night will be cloudy, with a low around 49 degrees.
The sun will then come back out Thursday, which will be partly sunny with a high near 61 degrees, according to NWS. There is a 40% chance of rain forecast for Thursday night, mainly before 11 p.m. The night will remain cloudy with a low of around 46 degrees.
Friday will see a 50% chance of rain, mainly after 11 a.m. The rest of the day will be mostly cloudy with a high near 56 degrees. There will also be a chance of rain Friday night before 11 p.m. The night will stay mostly cloudy with a low of around 43 degrees.
The rain will likely stick around Saturday with peeks of sunshine, and a high near 58 degrees. It will be slightly sunnier Sunday, with a high near 61 degrees.
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