It was the snowiest February ever for some cities, as the entire Inland Northwest experiences chart topping snowfall and cold weather.

SPOKANE, Wash. — February 2019 broke records and topped the charts in many weather categories across the Inland Northwest. The snow was a constant headline with the cold temperatures gripping the area all month long.

Five area cities broke their all-time snowiest February record. Lewiston at 30.7 inches of snow; Rosalia at 28 inches, LaCrosse at 24.0 inches; Wenatchee at 22.1; and Lind at 15.3 inches. Nearly every other location in eastern Washington and north Idaho ranked in the top four snowiest Februarys on record. Spokane notably jumped to No. 2 with 29.9 inches of snow, behind only 1893's mammoth record of 39.6 inches.

Among the largest events February threw at the area, the central Washington Blizzard on Feb. 9 brought cross-state travel to a halt. Numerous roads and highways were closed due to the extreme snow, wind and zero-visibility conditions. Moses Lake and the Waterville Plateau were just a few of the hardest hit areas.

Near the end of the month, the Palouse saw significant issues due to blowing snow. Again, numerous highways closed with the snow blowing and drifting back onto the road. Snow drifts reached heights up to 12 feet.

As for the cold weather, it was constant. Since Feb. 3, Spokane's temperature was below average every single day. Nearly all of the Inland Northwest experienced a top-10 coldest February on record.

Republic was the coldest with an average temperature of 16.7°, more than 12 degrees below normal and the 2nd coldest February all-time. Spokane's reading of 21.3° is good enough for fourth coldest and Coeur d'Alene at 22.9° is third coldest, both more than 10 degrees below the average.



However, no one broke the all-time record coldest February. 1936 was an extremely cold month for the region and every single city's record comes from that year (with the exception of Bonners Ferry, 1913).