A winter storm moving through the Pacific Northwest is bringing a mix of heavy rain, mountain snow, wind, and freezing rain to Washington state.
Warmer temperatures are moving into the Central Cascades and bringing a mixture of snow, rain and freezing rain at the mountain passes. Breezy conditions are also expected to pick up throughout the evening tonight and into early Saturday morning.
Snow levels have drastically jumped up to 5,000 feet earlier today with highs in Puget Sound climbing to 50 degrees or warmer. This changes tonight when a cold front pushes through, dropping our temperatures, picking up the wind, and taking our freezing level back down to 1500ft.
Due to the warmth earlier today, we're seeing problems in our area rivers. Problems with rapid runoff in our streams, rivers, and tributaries is taking place and a Flood Watch has been issued from until Saturday afternoon for the entire Western Washington region because of this.
A Wind Advisory has also been issued from tonight to early Saturday morning for the coast and areas surrounding Puget Sound. Expect winds out of the south 15 to 30 mph at times with gusts 45 to 55 mph in spots.
Freezing rain and winds downed power lines in the North Sound. Puget Sound Energy reported scattered power outages, mostly in Whatcom County.
Related: How to contact your power company or report outage
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Areas in the mountains still have a Winter Storm Warning in effect until 10 p.m. Friday. Areas above 2,500 feet in elevation, including Cascades of Snohomish and King Counties and Stevens and Snoqualmie passes, could see an additional 8 -12 inches of snow and ice accumulation.
The National Weather Service says to prepare for significant reductions in visibility at times.
Authorities are warning of icy road conditions as freezing rain falls in many parts of the state, including Whatcom County and eastern Washington.
Those of you thinking about going skiing this weekend, Saturday and Sunday are your better days.
KING 5's Jordan Steele, Jordan Wilkerson and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Related: How to keep your dog or cat safe in cold weather
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