Winter storm headed for western Washington/Oregon/Northern Cal.

Ought Six · 01-08-2009, 10:10 AM

The Snoqualamie has already set a new record, and will not crest in my area until 4PM. Highway 203, the main road through the Snoqualamie Valley, is cut at Carnation and Duvall. Looks like I will be working from home today.

Pablo Escobar · 01-08-2009, 11:18 AM

Seattle is cut off from the rest of America. No way in, no way out. To the south, I-5 is flooded for 20 miles and won't be open for a few days. The three mountain passes are closed because of avalanches, and may be open tonight or tomorrow.

Ought Six · 01-08-2009, 12:29 PM

We are going to be annexed by Canada.

BirdGuano · 01-08-2009, 01:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ought Six

We are going to be annexed by Canada.

Sounds like they are trying to drown you instead.

Ought Six · 01-08-2009, 05:48 PM

Well, they insisted the river would start going down this afternoon because the rains were over. It is raining like hell now, and there is a big orange blob on the RADAR map extending from Seattle eastward right up into the Cascades. With this much rain in the Snoqualamie watershed, I can only believe that the floodwaters are going to be around for at least a day more than they thought. It may be bad enough to make the present record flooding worse. We shall see.

Mousehound · 01-08-2009, 06:57 PM

CENTRALIA, Wash. — Floods, mudslides and avalanches in the Pacific Northwest kept tens of thousands of people from their homes Thursday, brought most freight trains to a standstill and stranded hundreds of trucks along the major highways that link Seattle’s busy ports with markets around the country.

Full article here:
http://www.tdn.com/articles/2009/01/...2496761252.txt

drummagick · 01-08-2009, 08:07 PM

Here's a pic from the road up to one of the closed passes, from the east end.

This creek is normally maybe 8' wide and a couple feet deep.

Ought Six · 01-08-2009, 08:44 PM

Highway 2 Reopens Over Stevens Pass

KIRO-TV News
Thursday, January 8, 2009

SEATTLE -- U.S. 2 has reopened to traffic after a two-day closure caused by flooding and avalanche danger.

WSDOT made the announcement at 4 p.m. The agency said three incident response teams will be stationed to respond quickly to stalls and collision.

Traction tires are required.

The two other major Cascade highway passes -- Snoqualmie and White -- remain closed by avalanche danger and water over the roadway.

Interstate 5 remains closed between Chehalis and Olympia by high water.
_____

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

================================================== ===============

Road closure information for the Seattle area:

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/seattle/incidents/

Ought Six · 01-09-2009, 01:39 PM

Well, I went out this morning to go to work, and all the roads out of town are still cut. The National Guard is here doing cleanup work, so hopefully they will have at least one of the roads open by today or tomorrow.

Wojapi · 01-09-2009, 06:03 PM

I-5 opened about noon.....they let trucks through first. Don't know if all lanes are open. Seattle groceries were running out of fresh fruit and veggies, I heard.