What does a “blizzard” mean?
A blizzard means there has to be heavy snow falling and sustained winds of 35 mph. That is occurring with this storm along the northwestern tip of Washington, where strong winds are racing out to sea near the mouth of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and heavy snow is falling as wind runs into the Olympics. We are also getting blizzard conditions in the mountains, where 1-2 feet of snow are expected in addition to wind gusts of 70-75 mph.