Short Range Forecast Discussion NWS Weather Prediction Center College Park MD 132 AM EST Tue Dec 18 2018 Valid 12Z Tue Dec 18 2018 - 12Z Thu Dec 20 2018 ...Continued unsettled in the West today with strong winds into Oregon... ...Increasingly wet through the Gulf Coast Wednesday... A strong cold front will move into Washington and Oregon today with another round of lower elevation rain and mountain snow. Winds will be strong out of the south ahead of the front especially over coastal Oregon where High Wind Warnings continue through the first part of Tuesday. Localized flooding remains a possibility in heavier bursts of rain. In the mountains, 1-3 feet of snow is possible at the higher elevations (e.g., North Washington Cascades) with over a foot possible to the east in the mountains of the North Idaho Panhandle. In addition, avalanches are possible on parts of the Washington Cascades due to the recent heavy snowfall accumulation. The rest of the lower 48 will be relatively quiet today with well above normal temperatures over the High Plains (about +20F anomalies) that will reach into the 40s/50s. High pressure will push through the Great Lakes with colder than normal temperatures confined to the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic and parts of Florida, but both areas will moderate on Wednesday. On Wednesday, a system moving out of Texas will redevelop to the east along the Gulf Coast where rain and some storms will expand in coverage. Rainfall is forecast to be generally under an inch in these areas, with locally higher amounts above an inch over parts of the Florida panhandle. Much lighter rain is forecast north of I-40 with only widely scattered showers east of the Divide to the Great Lakes as the once strong cold front weakens through the Dakotas. Fracasso Graphics available at www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/basicwx/basicwx_ndfd.php