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News / Clark County News

Concern shifts to lingering ice on roads

Drivers have an easier time in wake of Wednesday's mess, but potential problems loom

By Andy Matarrese, Columbian environment and transportation reporter
Published: December 15, 2016, 10:22pm
3 Photos
Zach Perez of Arizona, left, enjoys the winter weather as his girlfriend, Makayla Rehanek, snaps his photo Thursday afternoon at the  Vancouver Waterfront. The couple was in the Northwest house-sitting and visiting family for the holidays.
Zach Perez of Arizona, left, enjoys the winter weather as his girlfriend, Makayla Rehanek, snaps his photo Thursday afternoon at the Vancouver Waterfront. The couple was in the Northwest house-sitting and visiting family for the holidays. (Amanda Cowan/The Columbian) Photo Gallery

Thursday was largely tame, weather-wise, following the prior night’s commuting-hour shambles in the snow, but officials caution lingering ice could remain a problem through the weekend.

Jeff Mize, spokesman for Clark County Public Works, said most roads, including city roadways, appeared to be largely passable Thursday.

“The roads are in pretty good shape. The wild card is the temperatures going down,” Mize said.

Few regions of the county saw high temperatures above freezing, and even then, it was by a couple of degrees, according to the National Weather Service.

Lows for Thursday night and early Friday morning were forecast to be around 24 degrees.

The concern is the extent to which remaining snow or slush turns to ice, and how that will effect commutes Friday.

The county encouraged drivers to slow down and increase their following distance from other vehicles.

County road crews were out on area roadways spreading de-icer on curves, hills and other trouble spots earlier this week, and they’ll be there again Friday morning, Mize said.

“If the county is a sheet of ice tomorrow morning, there’s only so much we’re going to be able to do, and that’s a big if,” Mize said Thursday evening.

Classes today at Battle Ground, Vancouver, Camas, Evergreen, Hockinson and Washougal schools were canceled ahead of the weather.

Ridgefield, Woodland and Green Mountain schools will start with a two-hour delay, as will the Southwest Washington Child Care Consortium.

St. Joseph Catholic School, King’s Way Christian School and Gardner School of Arts & Sciences are also closed.

Meadow Glade Adventist Elementary will have a two-hour late start. Columbia Adventist Academy will start classes at 10 a.m.

Despite varying snow accumulation and some ice, traffic issues appeared to be largely minimal on local highways.

“People have behaved. It’s great,” Washington State Patrol Trooper Will Finn said Thursday.

Highways “throughout Clark County have been amazing today. I can’t say enough good things about it.”

What few crashes occurred were minor, he said, and the only significant disruption came in the morning, as commercial vehicles had stopped along the shoulders of Interstate 5 and I-205 going south.

Oregon required vehicles weighing over 10,000 pounds to use tire chains, so many truckers had pulled onto side roads and highway shoulders, or stopped in traffic, to chain up, Finn said.

Such backups happen occasionally when inclement weather hits, he said, but it wasn’t as bad as in previous storms.

“Normally when this happens, the snow is coming down, there’s stacked snow and ice on the freeway, and we have one lane of traffic, maybe two,” he said.

Forecasters call for high temperatures in Vancouver on Friday to reach around 31 degrees, with mostly sunny skies. Friday night’s low in the city will be around 18 degrees.

Light winds and cold weather in the region will continue into Saturday, which may see light snow flurries continuing into the evening and possible accumulation of less than half an inch.

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The weather service calls for a 50 percent chance of snow Sunday, again with possible half-inch accumulation.

Rain or freezing rain is likely Monday, but early computer models show temperatures in the high 30s or low 40s and rain later into next week, according to the weather service.

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Columbian environment and transportation reporter