Severe weather was expected to bring historic hail, gusty winds, and a few spin up tornadoes to the Pacific Northwest Wednesday, but that’s not what happened.

Portland was warm and sunny Wednesday around noon, even as a whirling system off the Pacific barreled toward the city.

PORTLAND (WGME)- -- Nice weather continues through the end of the work week in Maine. A messy storm arrives this weekend, bringing with it snow, sleet, and freezing rain for both Saturday and Sunday. Thursday will be quite nice with lots of sun and highs in the mid to upper 40s.

So what went “wrong” for severe storm formation? Available thunderstorm energy tanked as clouds and cooler marine air started leaking in as the showers pushed through. That quickly stabilized the atmosphere,

Abnormally strong to severe thunderstorms are becoming increasingly likely across southwest Washington and northwest Oregon Wednesday afternoon and evening. The Storm Prediction Center (SPC) has maintained a "Slight Risk" for severe weather, which is rare for this portion of... pic.twitter.com/Z60v8aZl8T

PORTLAND, Ore. — The threat of severe weather fades Wednesday night as wind and rain ramp up Thursday around Portland.Temperatures will sit nearly 20-degrees cooler Thursday than Wednesday’s ...

Strong thunderstorms are likely to occur between 3 p.m. to midnight on Wednesday, with potential for lightning, heavy rain, high winds and large hail.

When forecasting thunderstorms and severe weather, meteorologists look for potential energy in the atmosphere to feed storms. The forecast amount of energy was decent for big storms in western Oregon and Washington. Weather models said the energy would be there, and even the real-time vertical profile showed it.

Portland's Tom McCall Waterfront Park cherry blossom trees are in peak bloom, but Wednesday's storms could threaten this spring tradition.

The most intense activity, particularly lightning, was concentrated in Clark and Cowlitz counties in Washington, though the storm's moved into the Portland area.