The longest cold spell on record in Coeur d’Alene was punctuated by the coldest temperature of the winter on Monday as the mercury plunged to minus 2 degrees — the first below-zero temperature dating back to Dec. 17, 2016.

Climatologist Cliff Harris said the area has not experienced a thaw since Feb. 3, though the temperature did hit the freezing mark Monday afternoon under abundantly sunny skies.

Meantime, Harris is forecasting about 4 inches of snow as another system arrives Wednesday night into Thursday. Any accumulation over 1.7 inches will break a record for the snowiest February/March ever recorded in Coeur d’Alene. As of Monday, 56.1 inches had been recorded over the two-month period. The record is 57.8 inches set in 1955.

There is relief in sight — barely — as Harris is calling for temperatures in the upper 30s to low 40s by the end of next week. Still, with the record accumulation on the ground, the climatologist expects the snow to stick around for several more weeks.

“I don’t see any major melting until after the 13th of the month,” he said. “And I would say it will be mid- to late-April before it’s gone.”