Emergency responders are facing a chaotic afternoon in Clark County, with multiple traffic crashes on snow-slickened roads, including numerous rollovers into the median.
Area residents should be prepared for even more hazardous weather over the next two days, including continued cold temperatures and freezing rain Sunday.
Snow started falling around Vancouver about 11 a.m., according to Gerald Macke, a meteorological technician with the National Weather Service. He said officials were initially predicting lots of overnight precipitation on Saturday but they now predicts storms will hold off until Sunday morning.
“We’re expecting a pretty good band of snow to be coming through right now and it’s going to last for a few hours,” Macke said at about 2:45 p.m. Saturday. “But they’re telling us there’s going to be an overnight break . . . not a whole lot of precipitation, maybe some freezing snow and rain.”
That afternoon band of snow left freeways slick, leading to numerous crashes on local freeways, mirroring events from earlier Saturday in Oregon’s Willamette Valley.
About three-quarters of an inch of freezing rain is still expected accumulate Clark County starting Sunday morning and into the early afternoon. Temperatures are expected to remain below freezing until Sunday night, when precipitation will switch to regular rain.
Macke said temperatures will warm up to around 40 degrees by Sunday night or Monday morning but rain will continue.
Forecasters say it’s likely to be cold and wet throughout the start of the week, and there’s a possibility of snow at low elevations on Wednesday.
Because of the forecasted conditions C-Tran is opening The Vine on snow operation. The first day of the bus rapid transit service will be operated by C-trans regular 40-foot buses until conditions improve. Bus will follow the Vine route with “Vine” displayed on their head signs, but they will stop at existing Route 4 bus stops. Buses will still use the new Vancouver Mall Transit Center on south side of the mall.
The Associated Press reported snow and sleet created dangerous road conditions in Oregon on Saturday.
The National Weather Service said 3 inches of snow fell on top of freezing rain around Eugene by early afternoon. The Oregon State Police reported there were more slide-offs and crashes in the Mid Willamette Valley on Interstate 5 than they could keep up with.
Due to road conditions, the city of Portland closed community centers and indoor pools. Many other local attractions, including the Oregon Zoo were also closed.
The Portland Trail Blazers and the NBA have announced postponement of this weekend’s home game versus the Detroit Pistons from Saturday to Sunday at 6 p.m. Fans already holding tickets originally issued for tonight can use those tickets for entry at Moda Center on Sunday evening, or exchange them for a comparably valued game in the future.
Saturday’s hockey game between the Portland Winterhawks and Everett Silvertips at Veterans Memorial Coliseum has been postponed to a future date to be announced later by the team. Sunday’s game between the Winterhawks and Kamloops Blazers, originally scheduled for Moda Center, will now shift to Veterans Memorial Coliseum at 5 p.m., with season ticket holders taking their normal locations and all other seating treated as general admission.
After numerous people abandoned their cars in the streets during last month’s storm, the city of Portland plans to ticket drivers who ignore tire chain requirements where they’re posted.