Spokane area ends 2024 on wetter, warmer terms
Late-year precipitation pulled Spokane out of drought, and it looks like 2024 will enter weather records among the warmest in the area’s history.
National Weather Service meteorologist Jeremy Wolf says a little more than 3.5 inches of rain and snow fell on Spokane in December, about 1.3 inches more than the month’s average. That precip helped lift the area out of what had been a persistent drought.
“October 29th, Spokane was classified as a D2 drought on the U.S. drought monitors,” Wolf told SPR News. “So we were in a severe drought two months ago. But the latest drought monitor doesn’t even have us in abnormally dry conditions.”
As of Monday, the rain gauge at Spokane International Airport collected just over 16.5 inches of precipitation for the year. At the same time in 2023, the total was 13.7 inches. The 30-year average is 16.3 inches.
Wolf also noted that 2024 will likely land among the warmest years since record keeping began in the 1880’s.
“The average temperature for 2024 was 51.4 degrees, as measured at the Spokane airport, and that is the fourth warmest,” Wolf said.
Wolf said the warmest year on record was 1934, which had a mean average temperature of 52.9 degrees.
2024 will join several other recent years on the warmest list: 2015 was the second-warmest, 2023 came in 7th, and 2021 was 9th.
Watch out for avalanches in north Idaho
Avalanche watchers in Idaho are reporting an elevated possibility of slides in the Panhandle. The greatest risk, they say, is in the Silver Valley and Bitteroots, where heavy snow over the last couple of days has increased the chance of slides, especially in the higher elevations.
The Idaho Panhandle Avalanche Center says the snowpack in the area is under stress. It urges skiers and others in the backcountry to stay away until the area is more stable. On a five-point scale, the center rates the avalanche risk as a 3, or considerable, throughout much of the Panhandle.
As he leaves WA Senate, Billig touts economic achievements
When Washington legislators convene in Olympia in two weeks, they will do so without longtime Spokane Sen. Andy Billig.
After fourteen years in office, Billig is leaving his Third District seat and his position leading Senate Democrats.
In a conversation with SPR News, the veteran lawmaker cited a variety of accomplishments during his legislative career. They included preserving construction funding for the North-South corridor at a time when Governor Inslee had proposed pausing it.
Billig said he’s also proud that he was able to secure money to build Spokane’s University District Gateway Bridge, which links the Riverpoint Campus with the East Sprague Business District.
“Now, if you go over there and look at the development that’s happening, look at how that bridge was a catalyst for cleaning up that neighborhood and for spurring economic development and quality of life,” Billig said. “That is one of the most successful state investments that I’ve been a part of and something I’m really proud of.”
Billig’s successor in the Senate is Democrat Marcus Riccelli, who moves over from the House of Representatives.
Boise to ring in new year spud style (chives and butter optional)
It is not made of Waterford crystal, nor is it bedecked with glittering mirrors, nor is it nationally televised. But the herald of the new year in Idaho’s capital city is unique and unmistakably connected to the state.
Tonight, Idahoans will mark the beginning of 2025 with the 12th annual Potato Drop. At 6:00 p.m. Mountain Time, a crane will hoist the 17-foot-long, internally-lit fiberglass potato high above Cecil Andrus Park, in front of the Idaho capitol building in Boise. Musical and comedy performers will entertain the crowd through the evening.
At 11:59 p.m., the big-time baker (dubbed a “glowtato”) will be lowered onto a stage as fireworks brightly and noisily welcome the new year.
The Potato Drop began in downtown Boise in 2013 and moved to the state capitol two years later. The original potato, made of foam, was used for three years. The current fiberglass model debuted on New Year’s Eve 2016.
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Reporting was contributed by Steve Jackson, Doug Nadvornick and Brandon Hollingsworth.