Photo courtesy of Photos.com. Mar 14, 2012; 6:03 AM ET
While much of the central and eastern parts of the country will be enjoying springlike weather this week, those living in the West, specifically the Pacific Northwest, will be under the influence of a rather wet and stormy pattern.
A dip in the jet stream in the Northwest will be responsible for the stormy weather. It is this dip that will funnel multiple storms in from the Pacific.
In fact, the wet and stormy weather pattern got underway this past Saturday as valley rain and mountain snow fell across portions of the Northwest.
The atmospheric parade of storms will continue throughout the course of the week. However, snow levels were at their lowest point during the pattern Monday night and will rise out of the metro areas of Seattle and Portland moving forward this week.
A storm slammed the coastal Northwest Monday with localized wind gusts as high as 80-mph. Heavy snow fell in the mountains and even along the northern Oregon coast with accumulation along US-101.
Rain will spread into central California today bringing wet weather to the Bay Area and Sacramento Valley. Snow will also continue in the northern Sierra Nevada.
During Wednesday into Thursday a weaker disturbance will bring more rain and mountain snow to the region.
By the middle of the week, lower elevations in the valleys of western Washington and western Oregon as well as northern California could pick up over 3 inches of rain. When the coming week is all said and done, some locations could have in excess of 5-6 inches of rain with locally higher amounts possible.
Substantial snow will fall across much of the Sierra Nevada making skiers and snowboarders across the region very happy.
However, the considerable rainfall will lead to a heightened concern for urban and flash flooding, especially in poor drainage areas.
Some rivers and streams around the region may also reach flood stage at some point this week.
During the weekend the jet stream will take a major southward dip and will send drenching rain, mountain snow, low snow levels, gusty winds and strong thunderstorms into Southern California and the Southwest.
Keep with AccuWeather.com as we detail the storms expected to impact the region over the coming week.
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