Store shelves in the Northwest were picked over in the last few days before Christmas as shoppers tried to complete last-minute holiday errands and stock up before the ice, snow and freezing rain in the forecast hits.
Vancouver, the Portland area and Southwest Washington have been placed under a winter storm warning by the National Weather Service in Portland. The storm warning, issued at 3:30 a.m., is in effect from 4 p.m. this afternoon through 10 p.m. Friday. A wind chill advisory remains in effect through 6 a.m. Friday.
According to the weather service, heavy mixed precipitation is expected with snow and sleet accumulations of up to 1 inch and ice accumulations of 0.2 to 0.4 inches, along with winds gusting as high as 55 mph, mainly in the hills and near the Columbia River Gorge. Very cold wind chills are expected.
“Light snow will transition to a mix of sleet and freezing rain Thursday evening into Thursday night, with predominantly sleet expected Thursday evening and predominantly freezing rain expected late Thursday night through Friday,” NWS said on the website. “The most significant ice accumulations are expected to occur late Thursday night through at least Friday afternoon. Temperatures appear most likely to warm above freezing late Friday evening.”
The region could see power outages and tree limbs down as a result of ice and winds. The Friday morning commute and holiday travelers should expect icy roads and hazardous conditions.
“We’ll have freezing rain for Clark County and Southwest Washington, and accumulations are likely to be around a quarter to a third of an inch, which doesn’t sound like a whole lot,” according to Andy Bryant, a hydrologist with the National Weather Service in Portland. “But it doesn’t take a lot of ice coating to start to cause a lot of problems for transportation. Even just walking around outside will be tricky.”
Today’s high is expected to be 27 degrees in Clark County. Friday will warm up slightly with a high of 35.
According to Clark Public Utilities, a few power outages were reported this morning, with about 175 households without power as of 7:15 a.m. and about 300 recently restored. The outages were in north and east county.
C-Tran is serving The Vine stops with 40-foot buses. For more information, visit www.c-tran.com.
Warming centers
A number of organizations have worked with the Council for the Homeless to provide warming centers for anyone that needs to get out of the cold.
Anyone who needs shelter and housing assistance can contact Council for the Homeless Housing Hotline at 360-695-9677. The hotline is staffed 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. weekends and holidays.
A list of Clark County warming shelters, along with hours and details, can be found on the CRESA blog.
Vancouver resources
For weather-related issues that require immediate attention, such as traffic signal outages, fallen trees or broken water mains, call Vancouver Public Works at 360-487-8177. Contact Clark Public Utilities at 360-992-8000 if there are any downed power lines.
Public Works crews will soon apply deicer on dry streets and pretreat intersections and hill roads. The city will upkeep city-owned facilities, such as police and fire stations, as well as primary and secondary routes, which can be viewed online in its snow removal route map.
Any delays or closures to the city’s community centers or programs will be posted on www.cityofvancouver.us/parksrecculture. Community center members or those registered in camps will receive email updates.
Garbage, recycling and organics collections may be impacted by the wintry weather. City officials suggest having spare containers that can hold additional rubbish in case services are delayed. Those who use these services can receive service alerts through the RecycleRight app.
People can monitor wsdot.com or tripcheck.org for road closures and conditions.
