Forecast calls for La Nina winter after hot, dry summer

Following one of the hottest summers on record comes the expectation that winter will be extra cold, and extra dark.

This week, meteorologists with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration confirmed that La Nina will be back for the third winter in a row.

As a result, this winter could be as wet and cold as last year, when historic flooding hit many areas of western Washington, costing tens of millions of dollars in damage.

“They started keeping track of this statistic around 1950, and we’ve only had two three-in-a-row events,” said Dana Felton with the National Weather Service.

At Green Lake, news of the upcoming change caused people to enjoy the sunny summer conditions even more.

“I love them. I wouldn’t trade this for any other place in the country, period,” said one person whom KIRO 7 spoke with on Wednesday.

But not everyone is sticking around for the switch. One person is in Seattle for an internship that ends in a few weeks.

“Part of me is definitely glad that I’m leaving, but I wouldn’t know how to deal with it because I’m from LA,” they said.

Temperatures got down to the teens last winter, and despite the sunny conditions we’re seeing now, forecasters say that could happen again in just a few months.

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