West Coast U.S. Storms to Bring Heavy Rain, Snow, and Thanksgiving Travel Delays

Earlier in the month, the Northwest U.S. and the Rockies felt the impacts of two storms that moved through the area. That was just the beginning of what is expected to be a stormy month for the Northwest.

On Thursday, the storms brought heavy rain to the Pacific Northwest, including Portland and Seattle, and is expected to continue through the weekend. Seattle could see an inch or more of rain, which will only add to the total 4.09 inches the area has already seen this month as of November 8th. That's about 2.5 inches over the historical average.

Colder air will be more prevalent this time around, which could cause lower snow levels and tough travel through the Cascade passes. The storm this past week, snow levels were over 5,000 feet, but this storm's snow levels could be as low as 3,500 feet. Snow accumulation on the mountains is expected and could cause travel delays and disruptions.

The 58th annual Veteran's Day parade in Washington is likely to see bad weather, forcing attendees to gear up for rain and cold weather.

Good News for Some Areas

Although areas farther south may not see the impacts of these storms this weekend, California could see heavy rainfall starting next week. San Francisco Bay and the interior northern valleys of California are two areas that have not seen rain for three or more days in a row, so the moisture coming next week may be a welcomed relief.

The rain will be beneficial for the drought conditions, but it has the potential to cause flooding and mudslides.

Sierra Nevada will be another area happy to see some moisture as ski resorts currently only have a few inches of snow on the highest elevations. The storm coming in a few days will likely change that significantly, bringing potentially several feet of snow.

Later next week, more rain is expected to hit Southern California. Since August 22nd of this year, Los Angeles has only seen a 0.05 of an inch of rain, which is only 6% of the historical average of 0.85 inches.

Thanksgiving Travel Delays Possible

Moisture may be good news for some of the particularly parched areas of the West, the storms could impact Thanksgiving travel plans. Although forecasters aren't completely certain how the storms will play out, they are keeping a close eye on it.

A potential tropical storm developing in the Caribbean could affect these West Coast storms from several thousand miles away. If the tropical storm does develop, it could slow down the storms across the country by at least a few days. Meaning, the Western U.S. storms could linger longer and impact travel during Thanksgiving.