Juneau, still digging out of last weekend’s blizzard that dumped more than 30 inches of snow on some parts of town, is expected to get up to 15 more inches from a storm between Sunday night and Monday night, according to the National Weather Service Juneau.
But rain immediately afterward is forecast until next weekend as temperatures rise to the mid-30s to about 40, after which a return of snow is possible, according to the NWS Juneau forecast.
“The brief break of cold and dry weather that we have been in is coming to an end starting tomorrow,” the weather station posted in an announcement on its Facebook page Saturday. “An area of low pressure and associated warm front is expected to move up from the south bringing warmer air and moisture to the area. With the cold air in place already, most of the precipitation is expected to start out as snow before switching to rain. Right now, the heaviest snow is expected to fall across the Juneau area with totals of 11-15 inches of snow starting Sunday night and going through Monday night.”
“The biggest uncertainty for these amounts will depend on how long the cold air can stay in place. If the cold air stays longer, higher amounts of snow are expected. Should the warm air push in faster, a switch to rain will happen sooner leading to lower snowfall amounts.”
A total of 33.1 inches of snow fell at the NWS Juneau office between last Saturday and Monday, triggering multiple avalanches and sinking boats in harbor. City work crews were still clearing streets this weekend, with a notice telling residents in downtown Douglas to move vehicles from certain streets between 5 p.m. Saturday and 8 a.m. Sunday.
“Snow removal will begin on 5th Street and continue on 2nd Street if time allows,” the notice states. “Residents and vehicle owners on these streets are asked to move their vehicles in advance of this work so snow can be cleared as quickly and thoroughly as possible. Vehicles left on the street will impact operations and cause delays in the snow removal process.”
A similar notice was posted Friday for residents in some areas of downtown Juneau.
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at mark.sabbatini@juneauempire.com or (907) 957-2306.
