Button up for a touch of winter

After breezy and wet conditions swept through the Olympia area Tuesday – generating more than an inch of rain and a few power outages – temperatures were expected to fall and stay there the rest of the week, according to the National Weather Service.

There’s even a chance of snow.

Overnight temperatures beginning tonight are expected to drop to about freezing or slightly lower through Saturday. By Saturday, there’s a chance of snow at lower elevations in the Olympia area, said Johnny Burg of the National Weather Service said.

Another weather system is expected Saturday, although how much cold and snow it will generate is still to be determined, he said.

At higher elevations in the Olympia area, such as the Delphi Road/Capitol Forest, there is a greater chance of snow. Rain or snow is in the forecast for Wednesday and Thursday night, followed by a chance of snow for Friday, Friday night and Saturday. Snow accumulation is not expected to be more than half an inch or so a day, according to the National Weather Service.

Meanwhile, Tuesday’s windy conditions were not as windy as originally forecast.

A wind advisory was in effect for the Olympia area, although wind speeds topped out at about 16 miles per hour Tuesday afternoon.

Still, it doesn’t take much to knock out power and residents should be prepared for the possibility of scattered outages.

In Olympia on Monday, a tree branch damaged some equipment and temporarily knocked out power to 1,400 Puget Sound Energy customers, spokeswoman MacKenzie McDowell said.

On Tuesday, there was one outage that affected six customers in Rainier, she said.

Heavy rain through Wednesday afternoon also could result in some minor urban flooding.

A flood watch was in effect for Mason County, Burg said, and sharp river rises were expected in Thurston County, although they were expected to remain below flood stage.