Wind advisory for the Columbia Basin Tuesday afternoon

Rain showers were observed in the Columbia Basin early Tuesday as a disturbance passed through the Pacific Northwest. Most of the lowland precipitation has ended, though some showers remain possible into the daytime hours with the highest chance of these being along the Blue Mountains and northeast toward Ritzville. A few rumbles of thunder are also possible in these areas.

Behind the frontal passage, high pressure building along the coast as well as deepening low pressure east of the Rockies in Montana and Alberta is forecast to tighten the pressure gradient across the Columbia Basin leading to gusty winds peaking Tuesday afternoon. This is expected to wane after sunset as the high continues to build toward the Tri-Cities and the low in the Northern Plains moves out.

The National Weather Service in Pendleton has issued a Wind Advisory for 14:00 to 20:00 Tuesday in response to this weather pattern. The advisory includes the Tri-Cities, Yakima, Walla Walla, Hermiston, and surrounding areas. Southwest winds of 25 to 35 mph with gusts to 50 mph are forecast, with the strongest winds being in open areas and exposed ridge tops such as those in the Horse Heaven Hills.

Travelers heading north toward Moses Lake and Spokane can also expect gusty southwesterly winds. That said, the Spokane NWS office has opted to (as of this post) not issue wind alerts for their area, which includes Grant and Adams Counties. Peak gusts there are forecast to reach around 35 mph, though some isolated thunderstorms may bring brief periods with gusts to 50 mph.

Breezy conditions continue into Wednesday with gusts to 25 mph in the Tri-Cities area. A chance of showers returns this weekend as another strong frontal system approaches the region.

This article is accurate as of 04:15 Tuesday. You can check updated model guidance for wind by heading over to my Forecast Map page. The featured image is HRRR modeled wind gusts at 16:00 Wednesday as displayed by Windy.