SEATTLE - The National Weather Service says last month was the warmest January on record in Seattle, an average of 47 degrees.
That was about a half-degree warmer than the old record set in 2006. Seattle records go back to 1891.
Forecasters say the warm weather is due to the El Nino weather pattern.
Forecasters say the average daily high at Sea-Tac Airport was nearly 52 degrees, about 6 degrees above normal. The average low was the month was about 43, about 7 degrees above normal.
Bellingham also had its warmest January on record, averaging 45 degrees. And Olympia had its second-warmest January, averaging nearly 44 degrees.
The Weather Service says Spokane averaged 35 degrees. That's about 8 degrees above normal and the eighth-warmest in the past 130 years. Spokane had just 1.4 inches of snow. That's fourth-lowest.
The Weather Service says the mild weather will continue this week with a series of weak weather systems moving through the Northwest, bring a chance of rain.
