PORT ANGELES — The second wave of a stubborn polar onslaught brought more snow to the North Olympic Peninsula lowlands on Thursday.
The region hunkered down for an extension of the cold spell and a storm anticipated this weekend.
Snowfall totals from the latest weather system varied widely from one place to the next.
The National Weather Service reported 16 inches of new snow 2¬½ miles southwest of Port Angeles, while about 2 inches of powder fell downtown.
Port Angeles Police Sgt. Tyler Peninger estimated about 3 inches of snow in Sequim when he left for work on Thursday, and 9 inches on a hill nearby.
The National Weather Service reported 10 inches of snow 8 miles west of Port Angeles and 10 inches of snow 12 miles southeast of Port Angeles.
Farther to the west, 5 inches of snow were reported near Neah Bay. In Forks, 3 inches of new snow were reported.
Ted Buehner, a National Weather Service meteorologist, compiled a list of snowfall totals in western Washington. Snoqualmie Pass topped the list with 25 inches of new snow.
No wrecks that caused injuries or blocked roads were reported in Clallam County.
“We haven’t had any bad collisions,” Peninger said. “People are pretty much handling their mishaps by themselves at this point.”
City of Port Angeles spokeswoman Teresa Pierce said crews had plowed the main arterials by Thursday afternoon.
“Our street crews are now working on residential areas,” Pierce said.
The city uses three small plows attached to 1-ton pickups to clear residential areas and four larger trucks to clear the major arterials.
Port Angeles has 144 miles of streets and roads within its city limit.
Sequim Police Officer Maris Turner reported several crashes in downtown Sequim.
“Washington Street was sanded throughout the day. However, it is very slick,” Turner said.
Bill Riley, maintenance operations superintendent for the state Department of Transportation office in Port Angeles, estimated that crews had cleared 30 percent to 40 percent of the compact snow and ice from the 600 lane miles in the DOT purview by Thursday afternoon.
“We’re making headway, but with all the snow we got last night, we’re still scrambling,” Riley said.
The DOT uses plows, sand trucks and liquid chemicals to clear the roads. Crews apply chemicals first to break up the compact snow, then plow it off, Riley explained.
“We’re going to run 24/7 until we get back down to bare pavement again,” Riley said.
“Guys are getting a little tired, but still willing to do what it takes out there.”
Riley said West End roads were hit especially hard Wednesday night and Thursday morning.
Road closures
U.S. Highway 101 at milepost 233 near Lake Sutherland Road, west of Port Angeles, was closed at 7:15 a.m. because of multiple collisions — all non-injury and non-blocking — and icy road conditions.
The highway reopened at 10:44 a.m.
State Patrol troopers reported four non-injury collisions in Clallam County as of 3 p.m. Thursday.
“Due to the extreme weather that hit the Olympic Peninsula this morning and afternoon, troopers have been working non-stop with Washington State Department of Transportation to get the roadways cleared, and local tow companies have assisted in removing vehicles left abandoned in ditches,” said Trooper Krista Hedstrom, State Patrol spokeswoman.
Clallam Transit
With the exception of a few delays, Clallam Transit reported normal operations.
“It went well,” general manager Terry Weed said. “There were no incidents.”
Buses were chained up for about half the day as they maneuvered over compact snow and ice without missing a run.
“The road crews did a good job getting the roads in shape,” Weed said.
Power outages
A faulty lightning arrester at the Calawah Substation caused a widespread power outage in Forks, said David Proebstel, Clallam County PUD chief engineer.
The arrester was isolated by a PUD crew after 160 customers initially lost power at 10:28 a.m. Power was restored to 950 customers by 12:55 p.m., Proebstel said.
In Sequim, 10 customers lost power for 1 hour, 5 minutes on Port Williams Road.
A PUD serviceman suspected that a snow-laden limb caused a fuse to blow, Proebstel said. Fuses were replaced and power was restored by noon.
A third power outage early Thursday affected about 30 customers on Black Diamond Road, south of Port Angeles.
A large, snow-laden limb caused a line to burn down, Proebstel said. Power was out for 3 hours, 12 minutes and was restored at 8:15 a.m.
The PUD crew reported about 12 inches of snow at the scene, Proebstel said.
Hurricane Ridge
Barb Maynes, Olympic National Park spokeswoman, said Hurricane Ridge had 30 inches of snow on the ground on Thursday.
The National Weather Service had reported 17 inches of new snow Wednesday night into Thursday morning.
It wasn’t clear on Thursday afternoon whether or not Hurricane Ridge Road would be open today as scheduled.
Beginning today, the road is scheduled to be open every day until Jan. 4.
“We’ve got our road crews working up there right now,” Maynes said.
Conditions permitting, the road will be open from 9 a.m. to dusk.
Park visitors are encouraged to call the 24-hour hotline at 360-565-3131 before planning a trip to the ridge.
When the road is open, all vehicles are required to carry chains above the Heart O’ the Hills campground.
Pool closed
In addition to the school closures in Clallam County, the William Shore Memorial Pool in Port Angeles was closed because of the weather, Pierce announced in a news release.
Jefferson County
Workers with both the city of Port Townsend and Jefferson County were on duty around the clock plowing and graveling roads, officials said.
Paul Walters, a county roads supervisor, said this was one of the most intense winters he has seen in 28 years on the job.
“It’s been compacted so that makes it worse,” he said. “There’s not a whole lot of inches, but when it gets compacted, it gets bad.”
Two minor crashes were reported within the Port Townsend city limit on Thursday, and three minor crashes were reported in the county.
Anderson Lake Road was closed for part of Thursday when a shipping truck turned sideways at the top of the icy hill.
No injuries were reported, and crews had moved the truck by the end of the day.
The southern section of East Jefferson County has seen the most snow this winter, with 6 to 10 inches reported around Brinon.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-417-3537 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.
Reporter Erik Hidle contributed to this story.
