Tri-Cities sees earliest 80°F high on record, Walla Walla and Hermiston also see record temps

The warmest day of the week was able to produce record highs in the Tri-Cities and Walla Walla on March 19. Additionally, Hermiston tied their existing record for that date. Low elevation spots on the Hanford Site, around the Tri-Cities, and in the Hermiston area were able to tap 80°F (27°C) with widespread 70s (21-26°C) […]

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Rain showers and mostly cloudy Tue, heat wave this weekend

Tri-Cities weather May 9, 2023 An upper level low pressure system is moving eastward into the Northern Rockies Tuesday morning. Rain showers and isolated thunderstorms, mostly south of the Tri-Cities, will taper off into midday as the low moves deeper into Idaho. Maybe some clearing midday before clouds from mountain thunderstorms develop this afternoon. An […]

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List of new Tri-Cities temperature records from the July 2022 heatwave

Credit: Shutterstock/VladisChern

The heatwave that gripped the Pacific Northwest since the last week of July is finally drawing to a close, leaving behind several new temperature records. This event came during what is climatologically the hottest time of the year for the Tri-Cities meaning that the bar was already pretty high for temperature records. This heatwave extended […]

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Big heat for the Columbia Basin next week

It won’t be as extreme as the 2021 Heat Dome, which brought new all-time records to many locations in the Pacific Northwest, but much of next week is likely to see highs above 100° in the Tri-Cities. An upper level ridge of high pressure is forecast to move into the Pacific Northwest from offshore starting […]

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Exceptional drought conditions observed in Washington for the first time

Drought conditions in Washington for July 13, 2021. (Source: NDMC)

The drought gripping the Western United States continues to worsen in Eastern Washington. In this week’s update of the U.S. Drought Monitor, exceptional drought (level 4/4) was noted as stretching from the northern end of Rattlesnake Mountain to Sprague Lake, which lies between Ritzville and Spokane. A small sliver of exceptional drought conditions also reaches […]

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All-time records may fall in the Columbia Basin with the upcoming heatwave

An unusually strong area of high pressure is forecast to build over the Pacific Northwest during the next several days. The drought in place across much of the West (including the Columbia Basin) also adds a little to what temperatures the region may see. With soil moisture values low, there is little if any water […]

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Spring 2021 was third driest on record for Tri-Cities, driest in Walla Walla & Pendleton

Source: Hervé Agnoux/Wikimedia Commons

This Spring will go down as the third driest on record for the Tri-Cities as dry conditions continue to plague much of the American West. A total of 0.31 inches of rain was observed during the months of March, April, and May (meteorological spring). Tri-Cities Driest Springs Rank Year Precipitation 1 1964 0.06″ 2 1900 […]

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Heat advisory for the Columbia Basin extended to Thursday

Early Monday morning, the National Weather Service issued a heat advisory for the Columbia Basin. That advisory will still start at 11:00 Tuesday but now extends to 20:00 Thursday. It includes the Tri-Cities, Yakima, Walla Walla, Hermiston, and surrounding areas. FORECAST This heatwave comes just in time for the start of meteorological summer, which begins […]

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New high temperature records Thursday as heat wave continues

On Thursday afternoon, the Tri-Cities Airport reached 110° for the first time in five years, but it didn’t stop there. Preliminary data from the National Weather Service shows the airport in Pasco reached a high of 111°, solidly beating the old record for July 30 which was 107° set in 2003. The Tri-Cities aren’t the […]

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Highs around 110° for the Columbia Basin

High pressure will remain in place over the region through Friday. This coupled with southerly flow thanks to a deepening low in the Pacific will amplify already hot temperatures in the Inland Northwest, prompting the National Weather Service to issue an excessive heat warning for the Tri-Cities and surrounding areas. This warning goes into effect […]

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