“A large Pacific storm system” bringing rain, gusty winds and perhaps thunder to the PNW

Scattered thunderstorms, gale force winds and rain will move across Puget Sound this weekend.

Rain will fall across western Washington after a gusty Friday night in which wind speeds reached about 40 mph across much of the South Sound and up to 66 mph on Whidbey Island. Snow is expected to fall in the coming days, according to the National Weather Service.

By Sunday, temperatures will lose momentum as a cold front moves inland.

“A large Pacific storm system will move further into the northwestern United States over the next few days, bringing colder temperatures and much-needed rain/mountain snow to the region,” NWS wrote in its national forecast report.

Rainfall will be “persistent” in Western Washington and Oregon.

The detailed forecast for each day from Saturday to next Friday when November says hello:

Rain. Rain. Rain before 11 a.m. – 100% chance of precipitation Sunday in the Seattle area. There were showers and possible thunderstorms on Sunday night. It's raining on Monday. There is a 50% chance of rain on Tuesday. Rain is expected to fall after mid-morning on Wednesday. Thursday – rain. Friday – also rain.

The humidity is also currently slightly higher and is around 90%.

Meanwhile, the thermometer is forecast to dip above 40 degrees Celsius at night over the next seven days, with highs barely above 55 degrees Fahrenheit.

The cold has an added benefit for the region as the colder air “will allow a transition to snow in the higher elevations of the Olympics (and) the Cascades in the northern Rockies,” NWS said Saturday afternoon.

NWS Seattle shared a photo from the webcams at Mt. Rainier National Park on Thursday morning. “Beautiful views of paradise at Mt. Rainier this morning with a light dusting of snow!