Morning updates: Downed trees close roads, knock out power
Snow covered the region overnight but rain is now falling in most places near Portland as a wet and windy storm system moves into the area. But snow is still falling in Washington and many other areas.
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9:00AM. KATU News is now off the air (but do stick around for AM Northwest) and that will do it for our storm blog for now. Stick with KATU.com, KATU on Facebook and KATU News on Twitter for all the latest updates on our winter weather. Also, get updates on the go with our mobile apps for Apple and Android devices. Drive safely and we'll be back on the air at 4 p.m. or earlier if events warrant. We appreciate your viewership and contributions to our coverage. - KATU.com
8:45AM: Thom Jensen's Plastic Bag Wind Sensor (with a little help from some actual meteorological instruments) indicates current winds at Rockaway Beach are at 50 mph with gusts up to 95 mph at Newport, which is Cat 2 hurricane strength!
Bob Heye is in St. Helens where they got a lot of snow but it is now raining and melting. A local man says people are out shoveling and clearing sidewalks. Workers are using heavy equipment to move the slushy snow out of parking lots at City Hall and elsewhere.
8:35AM: Rhonda says she has confirmed a 95mph wind gust near Newport. Those high winds are headed inland and should arrive around noon. Rhonda says inland gusts could hit 50mph. Winds that strong take down trees, so be prepared. Here's her forecast video.
8:30AM: KATU.com producer Shannon Cheesman has been compiling viewers' snow photos into a gallery, check out the latest submissions.
8:10AM: Keep up the good driving out there. Highways are crowded but at least they are moving. The usual trouble spots are slow. Upper elevation highways near Portland are clear of snow. Watch for standing water. KATU Traffic page.
We're seeing what looks like a small slide of some sort on the Southwest Macadam Boulevard offramp from I-5 northbound on an ODOT camera. Lanes are closed but crews are there working to clear the roadway. The ramp is closed until the debris is cleared.
8:00AM: The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) has posted a list of streets closed due to downed trees or other problems. It will likely get longer as the day goes on.
7:50AM: Dave Reichert with Speed's Towing says they were busy overnight as the snow came down but things slowed down when the rain kicked in.
Rhonda says Lincoln City has recorded an 84mph wind gust as the storm moves in. Expect winds to pick up inland today as well and that could mean a lot of downed trees and power outages. A reminder to NEVER touch a downed power line even if it appears to be dead. If it isn't, you could end up dead.
7:40AM: Mary Fetsch with TriMet says crews are taking the chains off some buses where roads are clear. Other buses have "drop down" chains that can be deployed by the bus driver as needed. She says some West Hills routes are still chained up and buses with chains are limited to 25 mph. They also have some good winter weather tips for riders.
Out at the Oregon Coast, reporter Thom Jensen continues to brave the rain and wind as he monitors conditions there as day breaks. They are expecting really strong winds along the coast as the storm moves in. Many gusts over 70 and 80 mph have already been recorded.
7:27AM: Thanks to all our viewers who sent in photos! Keep them coming! Check out all the latest submissions here and send us your snow photos. Let us know where you are, who's in the photo and who took the picture.
TRAFFIC: Roads remain wet but clear of snow in the Portland area. Driver's should expect a slow commute this morning but so far, no major crashes. Watch for standing water. Highway 43 is still closed due to a downed tree near the Sellwood Bridge. Long delays and detours there. Get instant updates.
7:16AM: AP story: Alaska Airlines says that in response to snow forecasts, it has decided to cancel 38 flights into and out of Seattle and Portland, Ore., beginning at 6 a.m. Wednesday. The airline urged customers to check the airline website before leaving for the airport. The airline is also waiving change fees for customers traveling Tuesday through Thursday in those cities.
7:15AM: KATU News is staying on the air as our weather story develops and we'll continue to post entries to this blog as events warrant.
Quick recap: Snow overnight has turned to rain in the Portland area but north and east of the metro area, it's still snowing in many places, especially in Washington. But most major roads in the Portland area are clear of snow. Drivers can expect a slow commute this morning but there is no snow or ice on most local highways. However, standing water can be a problem. Latest forecast.
Many school districts are closed but Portland Public Schools are starting two hours late. Find your school's status on our closure list.
Around Portland, Highway 43 is closed from Lake Oswego and the Sellwood Bridge due to a large tree down across the highway. Highway 26 is closed from the the Highway 47 junction all the way to the coast due to trees down on the highway. Crews are working to clear the roads. Here's ODOT's site for the latest road updates.
About 30,000 people lost power this morning as trees and snow brought down power lines. Crews are working to get the power back on. Check the PGE outage map.
TriMet has all buses chained up and all lines are running but don't expect the buses to be on schedule.
The National Weather Service has canceled a Winter Storm Warning for the Portland area but they have now posted a flood advisory as local rivers and streams rise as the snow melts and the rain continues to fall.
Out on the Oregon Coast, KATU reporter Thom Jensen is monitoring conditions there as winds pick up and rain pours down. Gusts could top 80mph along exposed areas of the coast as the big new storm blows inland.
6:51AM: National Weather Service has issued a flood advisory for the Portland area. Here's part of their advisory:
"Overnight snowfall combined with warmer temperatures and additional rainfall will cause ponding of water along roads and highways as snow begins to melt today. Trained spotters have reported ponding of water along I-84, I-205 and near downtown Portland."
Standing water is a driving hazard. Slow down and traverse deep water slowly. If you're a local homeowner, help out city crews by making sure storm drains near your home are clear and draining water off the street.
6:43AM: Rhonda says NWS is telling her that areas as far south as Centralia in Washington could see as much as 10 MORE inches of snow today. Tacoma reports 4 inches on the ground so far at this time. If you have any doubts about the rain we are expecting to get, check out our radar map.
KOMO reports there is 8 inches of snow on the ground in Olympia and it's still coming down hard.
Rhonda's latest forecast video is posted now. She says it's a been a quick change from snow to rain in the metro area but it's still snowing hard in places north and east of Portland.
6:30AM: ODOT reports Highway 26 is closed for 45 miles from the Highway 101 junction at the coast to the Highway 47 junction west of Portland. From their site: Several down trees, highway is closed at the Highway 101 junction and Highway 47 junction. Use an alternate route. And expect long delays getting to or from the coast. Get ODOT updates here.
6:00AM: Rhonda Shelby has been keeping track of the "snow line" and right now it's well north and east of Portland but places like Longview and other Southwest Washington cities and towns are still getting snow. That will change as the morning goes on and the warm, wet and windy storm coming into the region pushes the cold air further north and east. Highs today will rise well into the 40s. We'll have her latest weather forecast posted at about 6:30.
Thousands of people are still without power. PGE has 30,000 customers out and other utilities are reporting smaller numbers. Get more info from PGE here. Call 503-464-7777 in Portland, 503-399-7717 in Salem or 800-544-1795 in other areas to report an outage.
Thom Jensen is using his highly scientific Plastic Target Bag Wind Strength Indicator at Rockaway Beach to keep tabs on conditions there. Latest: It's raining hard, warming up and the wind is picking up at the coast.
5:56AM: If you need to keep up on developments with the weather in the Seattle area and Washington in general, our sister station KOMO has one of the best weather guys around in Scott Sistek. Here's his regular blog and a live KOMO blog of today's events.
5:50AM: Natali says Portland Public Schools have said they are on two-hour delay this morning.
Michael Convery says a crash on I-405 SB is causing some delays. Highway 43 remains closed from Lake Oswego to the Sellwood Bridge due to a tree down across the roadway.
5:36AM: Lincoln Graves got the short straw today and is at Sylvan Hill. He says Highway 26 over the hill is wet and there are no problems but side streets have a thick coat of slushy snow that can be very tough to drive in.
There are many new school closures. Check our list which is updated in real time.
Bob Heye is in Vancouver near I-205 and says traffic is moving just fine after road crews made sure lanes were clear of snow and slush, but shoulders and side streets are not clear. Drive carefully.
5:30AM: Biggest traffic snarl remains the downed tree on Highway 43 near the Sellwood Bridge, all lanes blocked, road closed. Northbound drivers are being detoured in Lake Oswego and southbound at SW Macadam and Taylor's Ferry Road. Get instant traffic updates and brace yourself for a slow commute as the morning goes on. Watch for standing water.
5:16AM: Some good news: The National Weather Service has CANCELED the Winter Storm Warning for the Portland area. That's not to say things are going to improve a whole bunch as melting snow, gusty winds and heavy rain are still on the menu for today's weather.
5:09AM: Rhonda says an 80mph wind gust has been reported at the appropriately named Cape Foulweather. She says to expect more of the same at the coast and strong winds inland as well.
Also, Gresham/Barlow schools are CLOSED for the day.
Michael Convery says he's getting a steady stream of reports about downed trees. If you see a downed tree, be VERY CAREFUL and look for downed power lines. Even if it looks like the line is dead, DO NOT TOUCH IT. Very often they are still electrified. Touching it could be lethal.
5:05AM: Latest traffic: Highway 43 in the Dunthorpe area between Palatine Hill Blvd and the Sellwood Bridge still closed due to a downed tree. Michael Convery says there is a lot of standing water out there as well.
Joe Raineri is in Oregon City where another downed tree - a big one - came down at about 1 a.m., crushing a car and damaging a house. It has also knocked out power to a large area. No power crews on scene yet as seen in Joe's latest report. The people in the house were not hurt and say they are thankful for that.
Just tried to get on the PGE website and it is loading very slowly, but here's a link to their outage list.
4:55AM: How windy will it be at the coast? Here's what we said Tuesday: "According to the NWS, winds at some central coastal locations could gust up to 100 mph near the beaches and headlands. Residents all along the north and central coastal areas should expect sustained winds of 30 mph to 50 mph with gusts higher than 70 mph in the early morning hours." So far, no changes to that forecast.
We'll see if Thom Jensen can stay upright as the morning goes on. But wind like that can bring down trees, knocking out power. Here's an outage map from PGE. It's already getting pretty busy on that map. Report outages by calling 503-464-7777 in Portland, 503-399-7717 in Salem or 800-544-1795 in other areas. As you can imagine, they are busy, so expect to spend some time on hold. You can also text them outage info, go here and sign up.
4:40AM: Reporter Thom Jensen is in Rockaway Beach at the Oregon Coast where he says the wind is starting to pick up and it is raining hard. National Weather Service warnings are out for hurricane-force winds today along the central Oregon coast.
Also, Rhonda's latest forecast video is now posted. That and more information is on our Weather Page.
4:30AM: Traffic guy Michael Convery says a tree is down near Palatine Hill on Highway 43 near the Sellwood Bridge. It's a big tree and it's across all lanes. Expect delays there until it is cleared.
TriMet says all buses will be chained up.
4:22AM: Most roads around the Portland area remain clear at this time. Mountain passes are getting a ton of snow. Get local traffic Twitter updates from Michael Convery here.
School closure update: Vancouver and Evergreen schools are CLOSED for the day. Get real-time updates here for the latest closure and delay information.
Rhonda says people in flood-prone areas need to keep an eye on rivers.
4AM: PGE says over 30,000 people have no power this morning. Most outages are due to trees coming down onto power lines or power lines loaded up with wet snow. Joe Raineri says calls to PGE are being put on hold due to so many people calling.
Rhonda says there's rain falling in the Portland area but just north of the city, snow or a rain-snow mix is falling.
Most main highways are clear at lower elevations with slushy snow on the shoulders. But residential streets can be a challenge.
We've got closure information, traffic updates and more in the weather box at the top of the KATU.com home page.
Click the video link for a weather update from Rhonda Shelby.