This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Utahns braced for a dramatic shift as Tuesday's warm and balmy weather headed toward mid-week valley rain showers and mountain snows.
The National Weather Service put the western two thirds of the state under a Hazardous Weather Outlook extending through the coming weekend, though a storm system arriving from the Pacific Northwest was not expected to really hit Utah until late Wednesday.
That is when heavy snow was expected to accumulate in the state's mountains at 7,000 feet elevation and higher. An even stronger storm, originating in Alaska, was expected to hit the Wasatch Front Sunday night through Monday morning.
The Wasatch Front's forecast called for highs in the upper-60s and low-70s ahead of the first storm pulse with Wednesday's low temperatures in the 40s. Highs beginning Thursday will dip into the 50s.
Southern Utahns looked for highs in the 70s and lows in the upper-40s, along with winds of 10-20 mph. Highs on Thursday will be in the 50s to 60s.
The Utah Division of Air Quality rated breathability statewide as "Green," or healthy, while the Intermountain Allergy & Asthma website listed sagebrush as "very high" and mold at "moderate" levels on its pollen index.
Salt Lake City's high on Wednesday was to be 69 degrees, slightly higher than Tuesday's forecast for 67; Ogden looked for 66 and 64 degrees, respectively; Provo 68 and 69; Logan 65 and 63; Wendover 58 and 61; Duchesne 60 and 65; Cedar City 64 and 70; St. George 74 and 82; and Moab 75 and 77 degrees.
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