Snow predicted for Opening Ceremony

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- National Weather Service forecasters expect a strong storm to move through northern Utah beginning the morning of Feb. 8, the day the Winter Olympics begin.

True, that's more than a week away, but already on Thursday forecasters were casting a wary eye toward the end of next week.

"I don't want to paint myself into a corner," said James Nelson, a lead forecaster for the weather service. "It's out nine days, and that level of uncertainty is pretty high. What I tell you isn't necessarily going to happen."

Nonetheless, extended forecasts call for snow on Feb. 8, with temperatures in the low- to mid-30s. After sunset at 5:52 p.m., just minutes before the opening ceremony begins, temperatures will probably drop to the mid-20s.

Salt Lake Olympic chief Mitt Romney said he wasn't ready to accept a stormy forecast for Feb. 8.

"Weather forecasting is sketchy at this stage and not that reliable this far out. Time will tell," he said.

Several weak storms will come through northern Utah in the next week, Nelson said. Those storms will keep the Salt Lake valley air relatively clear and prevent a prolonged inversion -- a layer of low clouds, fog and pollution that can collect in valleys during the winter.

The weaker storms -- expected Friday, Sunday, and Wednesday -- will drop 1-to-2 inches in the mountains, and keep temperatures in the 30s, Nelson said.

 

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