PORT ANGELES — The blanket of snow on the North Olympic Peninsula turned into a slushy mess Tuesday as warmer temperatures and light rain moved into the lowlands.
“The heaviest snow is over, but we’re not out of the woods yet,” said Courtney Obergfell, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Seattle, on Tuesday.
After a series of winter storms — and a respite from the weather today — another system was expected to bring a mix of snow and rain to the lowlands Thursday into Friday.
Precipitation was forecast to fall mostly as rain near sea level and as snow in the foothills.
“It’s going to be a little warmer, so snow levels are going to be a little higher,” Obergfell said Tuesday.
“Snow levels will be rising to about 1,000 feet. We can’t rule out another rain-snow mix, but it looks like mostly rain in the lower elevations.”
Obergfell added that temperatures will drop below freezing in the Peninsula lowlands tonight, resulting in slippery roads, highways and streets.
“Anything that melts in the next couple of days will likely refreeze overnight,” Obergfell said.
Obergfell said there was a chance for more lowland snow next week, adding that the forecast had a high degree of uncertainty.
High temperatures were forecast to climb into the low 40s in Port Angeles, Port Townsend, Sequim and Forks on Friday and Saturday, contributing to the slow melt.
New snow
Snow spotters reported between 2.8 inches and 6.5 inches of new snow in Port Angeles on Tuesday morning.
Other spotters in higher elevations south of the city reported one-day totals between 10 inches and 12.8 inches, the National Weather Service said.
Spotters near Neah Bay, which remained without power Tuesday, reported 2 to 9 inches of new snow. A spotter north of Sequim observed 3.2 inches of fresh snow.
“It varies quite a lot with elevation,” Obergfell said of the accumulations.
An earlier storm produced more than two feet of snow outside of Sequim and Port Angeles on Friday and Saturday.
The State Patrol reported 44 collisions and 28 abandoned or disabled vehicles on Clallam County highways from 11 a.m. Friday to 6 a.m. Tuesday, said Trooper Chelsea Hodgson, State Patrol spokeswoman.
During that time, Jefferson County experienced 16 collisions and 29 abandoned or disabled vehicles, Hodgson said.
Hodgson reminded drivers to watch their speed, even on highways that have been plowed.
“Just because it looks clear doesn’t mean they need to go as fast as the posted speed limit,” Hodgson said in a Tuesday interview.
“We don’t want people to end up in a ditch.”
A downed tree blocked both lanes of state Highway 112 near Neah Bay on Tuesday morning, the state Department of Transportation said.
The highway was closed at milepost 3 from 9:30 a.m. to 11:02 a.m., according to DOT.
12 stuck trucks
In Jefferson County, U.S. Highway 101 was reduced to one lane at milepost 312 south of Brinnon from about 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday after 12 semitrucks became stuck in the snow.
“They got stuck after the snow started falling,” Hodgson said.
No injuries were reported, she said.
“The first semi jack-knifed and then the second tried going around the first and got stuck,” Hodgson said. “Then the third tried to go around the second. They all became stuck and blocked the entire roadway.”
The southbound lane was open with alternating traffic as a trooper helped to chain up nine trucks.
On Tuesday, Hodgson said drivers were spinning out and hitting guardrails all over Highway 101.
“Drivers need to realize that even though the roads are bare and wet, there are some snow patches,” she said. “When the temperatures fall at night that water turns to ice and becomes slick.
“Slow down and be cautious,” Hodgson advised.
DOT crews were “working hard” to clear highways in Clallam and Jefferson counties Tuesday, Hodgson said.
“We’ve still got snow and slush in the shoulders and the medians of the less-traveled routes,” she said.
The Clallam County Public Utility District reported 763 outages in Neah Bay at 4 p.m. Tuesday. There were 1,500 outages in the county earlier in the day.
Jefferson County PUD reported no outages Tuesday.
Clallam Bay prison
Inmates at the Clallam Bay Corrections Center were offered extra blankets Monday because of fluctuating temperatures related to a boiler replacement project, a state Department of Corrections (DOC) official said.
The prison is in the middle of a long-planned boiler replacement, and the back-up boiler was producing temperatures ranging from 65 degrees to 75 degrees, DOC spokesman Jeremy Barclay said.
The old boiler kept temperatures in the 68- to 70-degree range, Barclay said.
DOC staff was monitoring the back-up boiler and temperatures inside the prison.
“We’re constantly monitoring it, trying to get it as regulated and consistent as possible,” Barclay said Tuesday.
Meanwhile, the Port Angeles and Sequim school districts announced Tuesday that classes would be canceled today.
“When we are able to assure safety for all, classes will resume,” Sequim School District officials said in a Tuesday alert.
Brinnon School District is also closed today.
Chimacum School District canceled preschool and out-of-district transportation, and was planning on an early release schedule for today.
The Port Townsend and Quilcene school districts planned to resume classes at the regular times with regular bus routes today.
For information on other school districts, check their websites.
The Sequim Civic Center, which had been closed for inclement weather, was scheduled to resume normal hours today. The civic center at 152 W. Cedar St. will be open from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
City officials reported a few inches of fresh snow Tuesday morning.
“The Public Works crew is working on clearing the main arterial streets and then will begin clearing residential streets,” Sequim officials said.
Port Angeles City Hall also was closed Tuesday. Updates will be posted on the city’s website, www.cityofpa.us.
“Essential functions and services will continue to operate,” Port Angeles city officials said.
“Citizens should continue to limit driving and use alternative routes to avoid hills or problem areas.”
The Clallam County commissioners’ work session, which was canceled Monday for inclement weather, has been rescheduled for Thursday.
The work session will begin at 9 a.m. in Room 160 at the Clallam County Courthouse, 223 E. Fourth St., Port Angeles.
The Port of Port Angeles closed its administrative office at 338 W. First St. in Port Angeles on Tuesday. Port offices will re-open as soon as it is safe to do so, officials said.
Port customers and tenants with urgent issues can call port security at 360-457-1909.
________
Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56450, or at rollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
Jefferson County reporter Jeannie McMacken contributed to this story.
A city-owned snowplow clears a parking lot in the 100 block of West Front Street in downtown Port Angeles on Tuesday. After multiple waves of snow since Friday, many people on the North Olympic Peninsula find themselves with the task of digging out from under snow amounts totaling up to two feet in some areas. (Keith Thorpe/Peninsula Daily News)
Madelyn Archibald assists a garter snake found in the snow along Maxfield Road north of Forks on Sunday. She picked up the snake and released it into a brush pile back in the timber. (Lonnie Archibald/for Peninsula Daily News)
Snow covers Port of Port Angeles piers Tuesday. (Jesse Major/Peninsula daily News)