Crashes force closure of I-90 near Spokane Valley; after-school activities cancelled in Spokane

From staff reports

A half-foot of snow fell on Spokane Wednesday, snarling traffic, forcing cancellations and breaking a 71-year-old weather record for the day.

The snow started slowly around midnight and grew to a crescendo in the late morning and early afternoon. It had moved out of Spokane by around 4 p.m., when the Spokane International Airport set a record with about 5.8 inches recorded.

Wednesday’s snowfall tops the 3.4 inches that fell Jan. 17, 1953, said National Weather Service Meteorologist Daniel Butler. The storm also brought 6 inches to Mead, 7 inches near the Dishman Hills and Cheney, 6.5 inches to Deer Park and 3.7 inches to Fairchild Air Force Base, according to reports received by the weather service.

A 12-vehicle crash forced the closure of eastbound Interstate 90 near Spokane Valley early in the afternoon, and numerous slideoffs, collisions and stalled cars made for a slow afternoon commute.

“The evening commute is likely going to be quite a bit worse than the morning one,” Rachael Fewkes, meteorologist at the weather service in Spokane, said Wednesday morning.

A snow day for some

One by one, many schools started delaying or canceling classes as the snow piled up.

Spokane Public Schools announced that after-school activities were canceled as a result of the worsening street conditions. The district made the announcement to parents via text around noon.

Spokane’s school buses donned chains for pickup Wednesday. The district will evaluate Thursday’s conditions and direct bus provider Zum to chain up if necessary.

Like all other school districts in Spokane County except Orchard Prairie, Spokane opted to hold classes Wednesday, since snow had been relatively light overnight.

The National Weather Service office on the West Plains only had received 0.8 inches of snow as of 6 a.m. But conditions worsened significantly later in the morning.

Coeur d’Alene Public Schools and the Lakeland School District closed Wednesday as a result of the winter storm. Lakeland noted that the closure would allow officials time to make repairs to pipes broken in the frigid temperatures last weekend.

Gonzaga University suspended classes and business operations on campus at 3:30 p.m., and Washington State University and Eastern Washington University suspended operations after 2 p.m.

Car chaos

Multiple crashes caused “massive” traffic delays on Interstate 90, but those were cleared by 5 p.m., according to Washington State Patrol Sgt. Greg Riddell.

Riddell said he counted 12 crashes at one time Wednesday between Barker Road and Liberty Lake.

Within the city limits, Spokane Police Department recorded 19 collisions within an 11-hour period, spokeswoman Julie Humphreys said around noon. Nine of those collisions caused an injury, and four were reported as hit-and-runs. When Spokane saw its first round of snow in December, the city recorded 85 collisions.

No arterials had been shut down as of 12:10 p.m., but Humphreys said the police department was monitoring the snow accumulation.

Eastbound Interstate 90 was shut down around 1 p.m. between Spokane Valley and Liberty Lake from a 12-vehicle crash, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation. The interstate reopened at about 4:30 p.m., the state department said.

One crash was blocking the eastbound lane near U.S. Highway 2 around 7:45 a.m. Another crash was blocking the westbound lane of Interstate 90 near Latah Creek Bridge and took about two hours to clear. The Hamilton off-ramp was also blocked for 20 minutes to clear a car stuck in the snow, according to the state’s Department of Transportation.

Some of the I-90 crashes involved minor injuries, but none was life-threatening.

In North Idaho, however, a 69-year-old Clark Fork, Idaho, woman died when she lost control Wednesday morning on a snow-covered state Highway 200 west of Hope, according to an Idaho State Police news release.

The woman, whose name was not released, went off the roadway in a 2000 Nissan Pathfinder and struck a guardrail before going down a steep embankment and overturning.

The driver was not wearing a seat belt and was thrown from the Nissan. She died at a local hospital. ISP is investigating the crash.

A school bus slid into a ditch shortly before 3:30 p.m. at Post Falls High School, said Post Falls Police Sgt. Ryan Dalke. A tow truck was called to tow the bus out. Dalke said there were no injuries and he was unsure whether students were on the bus.

Washington’s transportation department is reminding people to stay far behind snow plows while they work and to refrain from passing them on their right side as a safety precaution.

“Give them lots of space to work,” the transportation department said in a social media post. “We sometimes have to make erratic maneuvers when clearing snow from shoulders, ramps, gore points, etc.”

None

Plowing ahead

Those Spokane snow plow crews worked all day Wednesday, maintaining priority arterial routes and hills, according to a city of Spokane news release. A “full crew” worked through the night and will transition into a “full-city plow” as arterials and secondary routes are clear and snowfall subsides.

Full-city operations means crews will work 24/7 until all city streets are plowed. A full-city plow reaching all 2,200 lane miles of streets should take about three days to complete once it stops snowing and is dependent on weather conditions.

“The day shift crews have been focused on main arterials and hills today and the night crew will continue that work as needed,” street director Clint Harris said in the release. “Once those routes can sustain safe travel conditions, crews will start moving into secondary and residential areas.”

Snow response priority starts with arterials and hills; then secondary routes, including schools and hospitals; and third, residential areas. The routes often include applying materials such as sand and deicer.

The order for plowing residential routes, as well as snow plow progress, is posted on the city’s website at my.spokanecity.org/streets/maintenance/snow-removal/.

Vehicles should be parked on the odd addresses side of the street in residential areas to assist plows.

Spokane County Public Works crews are attempting to clear main thoroughfares in unincorporated areas of the county and will likely not be able to access secondary arterials until Thursday. Department spokesperson Martha Lou Wheatley-Billeter said the continual snowfall Wednesday meant crews had to repeatedly hit the emergency routes and major arterials that are prioritized during winter storms.

Wheatley-Billeter said crews are working 12-hour shifts around the clock, using more than 70 graders, deicing trucks and snowplows to clear the largest county road system in the state. Residents can track progress through the department’s snowplow tracker on their website.

“It takes time to get through all of that,” Wheatley-Billeter. “When it keeps snowing and you have to circle back to those priority one routes, people need to understand that we’re not going to get to those residential areas very quickly.”

With freezing rain in the forecast for Friday evening and Saturday morning, Wheatley-Billeter asked residents to assist work crews in their cleanup efforts by ensuring storm drains near their residences are cleared.

“Those drains need to be cleared of snow and ice, or any materials like leaves that have collected,” Wheatley-Billeter said. “That rain needs somewhere to go, otherwise it will flow into intersections and freeze up.”

Drivers should be aware that despite the best efforts of county, city and state transportation crews, roads will not be bare and dry, Wheatley-Billeter said. Those behind the wheel need to prepare accordingly by giving themselves plenty of time to reach their destination and plenty of space while driving.

Wheatley-Billeter also asked drivers to give plows, deicing trucks and graders plenty of room on the road, and to not attempt to pass on the right side.

“If you’re following a grater, a plow or a deicer, you see the signs that say, ‘Stay 50 feet back,’ ” Wheatley-Billeter said. “There is a reason for it. It’s a matter of safety.”

City of Spokane Valley spokesperson Jill Smith said crews were focused on plowing main arterials, hillsides and school and emergency zones Wednesday. Smith said the process was going smoothly, with no issues to report.

The Spokane Valley Public Works department began using magnesium chloride, a liquid deicer, and salt within 200-300 feet of intersections, stop lights and stop signs Tuesday afternoon, Smith said. The same process began for complete sections of roads on hillsides Tuesday evening.

Smith reminded Spokane Valley community members that they are responsible for clearing snow on sidewalks near their homes and businesses.

While Wednesday’s storm upended the day for many, milder weather is in the near future.

Thursday is expected to be partly sunny in the morning and cloudy in the afternoon, with the potential for 1 to 2 inches of snow Thursday night and Friday morning, Butler said. Light freezing rain is possible Friday. Light rain is expected Saturday, and warmer temperatures are expected to stick around for a while. The highs in Spokane from Sunday at least through Wednesday are predicted to reach the upper 30s or low 40s.

This story was reported by Alex Duggan, Garrett Cabeza, Nick Gibson and Jonathan Brunt.