Heavy winds and mountain snow in weekend forecast

The National Weather Service says multiple winter systems will bring heavy winds and waves of snow to the Inland NW.  Breezy conditions with another round of snow is expected by Saturday morning and persisting into Sunday with the potential of heavy mountain snow.  An Arctic front arrives by Sunday for more snow showers and breezy conditions.  Monday looks drier with very cold
and dry conditions persisting into the middle of next week.

North Central Washington is under a Wind Advisory Saturday from 11 AM to 10 PM  The forecast is for Southwest winds 25 to 35 mph with gusts to 55 mph. The strongest wind gusts will occur across the Waterville Plateau, along and south of I-90 across the Columbia Basin. The potential exists for downed trees and power lines across the region causing power outages. Drivers could experience difficulty driving especially those with high profile vehicles like RV's.  Strong winds are also expected on Friday afternoon gusting up to 30 mph.

Winds are expected to increase after 11 am Saturday but will be the strongest from 2 pm to 8 pm. Winds should decrease late Saturday evening.

UPDATE: The WSDOT has announced avalanche control is planned for US 2 Stevens Pass on Saturday, February 17th between 2:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m.  Eastbound traffic will be stopped at Scenic at milepost 58 and westbound traffic will be stopped at milepost 64, the summit of Stevens Pass. Avalanche control work generally takes from 30 minutes to 2 hours to complete. WSDOT will provide an update should an extended closure become necessary.

The winds present the possibility for downed trees and power lines across the region causing power outages. Drivers will also experience difficulty driving, especially high profile vehicles.