Winds gusty, but not so lusty

The wind didn’t show up as advertised on Monday — but what about the snow that some are predicting will show up on Christmas Day?

A windstorm that had been billed as potentially fearsome ended up fizzling in Lane County on Monday, causing only minor disruption and damage.

Wind gusts up to 50 mph had been forecast for the Eugene-Springfield area, but the highest gust recorded at the National Weather Service station at the Eugene Airport was 40 mph, at 12:28 p.m., with lesser gusts striking from 6 a.m. through 4 p.m.

But the winter season is still young, and the next suspense in store relates to Friday — Christmas Day. Just the right mix of cold and moist weather might descend on the Willamette Valley to create snow on Christmas Day, although the likelihood of snow in Eugene-Springfield is slim.

The weather service forecasts snow on Christmas Day for Cottage Grove and for Oakridge, as well as for the Cascade Range and high passes. But the current forecast for Eugene-Springfield is for rain and a low of 33 early Christmas Day morning, and rain showers with a high of 41 through the day.

Snow on Christmas Day in Eugene is rare.

According to weather service records going back to 1890, there have been just four official “White Christmases” in Eugene history. The weather service counts an inch or more of snow on the ground on Dec. 25 as a White Christmas. They were in 1921, 1924, 1983 and 1990.

A half-inch or less of snow was reported on Dec. 25 in 1916 and 1948. There were snow flurries in the air reported in 1952, 1954 and 1965.

All of that adds up to a 2 percent chance of snow historically on any given Dec. 25 in Eugene, meterologist Matthew Cullen says. And for this year?

“There is a definite pattern of coldness setting up” for Friday, Cullen said.

But the snow level won’t fall much below 1,500 feet, Cullen said.

“That’s not to say there wouldn’t be a (snow) flurry,” he said.

In Cottage Grove, the forecast is for a mix of snow and rain on Dec. 25, with a low of 32 in the early morning, rising to 39.

In Oakridge, the forecast calls for snow showers on Christmas Day, with a low of 26 early in the morning, rising to 36.

The Cascade passes will continue to pile up snow, with snow falling every day at least through Monday.

Snowfall on Monday, combined with high winds, brought down about 20 trees across Highway 230 — the West Diamond Lake Highway — in the Cascades. The Oregon Department of Transportation cleared the mess by Monday afternoon.

The winds caused a smattering of power outages in the Eugene-Springfield area on Monday. In Eugene, power was temporarily out in the Barger Drive and Terry Street area, as well as east of West 11th Avenue and east of Pearl Street, after falling trees knocked down powerlines.

Eugene Water & Electric Board’s headquarters were among the entities temporarily without power Monday morning.

Two mudslides temporarily closed roads in the Florence area.

With or without snow, the weather service is forecasting precipitation and gusty winds up to 30 mph for the Eugene-Springfield area through the weekend.

Follow Christian on Twitter @ChristianWihtol . Email [email protected] . Follow Mark on Twitter @MarkBakerRG. Email [email protected] .