Update: 2:10 pm: Neighbors tell me that it is hopping on the top of the Avenue, making it difficult to find parking or to move about. Shoppers are getting in their last minute groceries and preparing for more precipitation to come. Our KING5 weatherguy Rich Marriott has this to say,
“Warm air finally made its way into western Washington this morning bringing a mix of rain and snow showers. However an upper level disturbance will swing inland late tonight. This will draw down some cooler air once again. This should result in another round of snow mainly from about Midnight to 7AM on Christmas Day around Puget Sound but a few hours earlier along the south Coast. “
Update: 6:50 am: It’s been snowing since 4 a.m. or so, and it looks like we have a half inch to an inch of new accumulation so far. Doppler shows we still have more to come. “Christmas Eve will feature a one-two punch,” says KOMO’s Scott Sistek. “Around mid-morning, a stronger storm comes inland to our north.” Total accumulations will be 1-4 inches, and then it will switch to rain. The concern this afternoon: urban flooding, because many of the storm drains are iced over (if you have one near your home, you might want to try to clear it.) Metro has updated their schedule for the day, an I-90 is closed right now near Mercer Island due to an accident, but the other highways and freeways are moving well.
Here’s a tip from Matt, the Engineer, about walking
Be very careful if you need to walk down the hill. I tried three different sets of stairs, starting with the ones by the view park. They are unusable – they started out with packed snow that became rounded with use and now are frozen and slippery. The only route I found was the Counterbalance, which has divots from ski boots (it was covered in skiers yesterday). It’s still slippery, but is much better than the stairs.
The City of Seattle just put out a press release explaining that garbage and yard waste pickup was postponed on Tuesday “due to dangerous road conditions.” Collectors will attempt another go at it Wednesday – if road conditions improve. “Customers missed today should leave their containers out tomorrow,” explains Seattle Public Utilities. “If materials are not collected tomorrow, then customers should bring in their containers until next week.”
It really doesn’t look good for garbage collection in Queen Anne. The latest from Seattle Public Utilities here. They say that If garbage is not collected today, customers will have to wait until next week. In addition, due to the Christmas holiday, Thursday and Friday customers will be delayed one day. Thursday customers will be collected Friday and Friday customers will be collected Saturday assuming the roads are clear.
If your garbage is missed for this week, you can set out double your normal amount of garbage at no additional charge next week. If you are missed two weeks in a row, you can also take your waste to Seattle’s Recycling and Disposal Stations, where it will be accepted at no charge.
Seattle Public Utilities’ (SPU) web site and call center (206-684-3000) will be updated with the most current collection information. Customers can also be sign-up for CurbWaste E-News service alerts.
It’s not just garbage at our homes that is piling up, but around the city.
According to KING5‘s weather forecaster, Rich Marriott, the Puget Sound will see more snow later this evening.
By late tonight night another weather system will approach the state spreading snow into Puget Sound around midnight. Accumulations of 1 to 3 inches are possible by the commute on Wednesday morning. Snow will continue most areas through the morning with another 1″-2″ possible. Showers will continue during the day on Wednesday but will be more mixed snow and rain for much of the area as temperatures warm during the day.
Really, more snow? Argggh! Well, this snow storm has given us neighborhood bloggers a chance to provide regular updates on what’s going on. Thanks to David for sending this terrific photo.
Update 10:00 am: No buses at the top of Queen Anne. You will have to go down to 2nd and Roy to pick up your bus route.
The roads seem worse than ever. Why? There are more people driving today and it’s causing traffic snarls, especially in downtown. The roads are extremely bumpy, and cars are trying to pass each other. Avoid downtown if you can. Hint: Aurora is great. Lanes are narrowed because of the snow on sides, but the roads are clear. Hint: If you are parked on the side of the road and have been for the last 3 days, you will need to dig out. It is difficult for cars to simply move out of their space.
Be careful in the morning. The snow on the streets is being packed down creating an icy surface. In other areas, you may see deep ruts being created from the soft snow which has now frozen solid. Makes for bumpy travel!
“There will be serious icing conditions,” says UW professor Cliff Mass, who has been an excellent source of weather information. “(It) may be a real problem with perhaps more troublesome conditions than (Sunday) morning in some locations.”
Don’t forget to check Metro transit for changes in the bus schedule.
Worried that you might not be able to pull together that special Christmas dinner when you can’t get out of your home? Snowstorms will not stop Eat Local from helping with your holiday planning.
They are open regular hours 8am to 8pm everyday. And they are offering a 10% discount on all gift card purchases. Mention that you saw the offer on the queenanneview.com!
Eat Local is an artisan food store offering prepared meals made with seasonal, organic ingredients bought directly from local farms.They offer a wide array of options to make your entertaining “effortless.”
After posting photos of the neighborhood bonfire, I heard that a good gathering took place on top of Queen Anne near the counterbalance. Does anyone have photos that they could send to tips@queenanneview.com?
Also, it was not all fun and games on the counterbalance. A driver totally ignored signs stopping traffic at the top of the hill. You can seen him coming down the counterbalance while people were sledding and skiing and then being seriously disturbed when confronted. Thanks to Nina for the video!
King County Metro Transit will be operating approximately half of its regular service Monday morning, Dec. 22, because of ongoing difficult travel conditions due to heavy snowfall over the weekend. Also, roads throughout King County are expected to be dangerously icy Monday morning.
Metro Transit will operate on a holiday or partial holiday schedule on the following days:
- Thursday, Dec. 25 – Christmas Day
- Friday, Dec. 26
- Wednesday, Dec. 31 – New Year’s Eve
- Thursday, Jan.1
- New Year’s Day Friday, Jan. 2, the day after New Year’s Day
Here is the link to Metro Online’s home page http://transit.metrokc.gov/ and all information is under the Holiday Transit & Customer Services header.
Update: 8:30 pm: The snow continues to rise. MyBallard reports 8.5 inches, and Queen Anne looks to be at least that amount. In addition to people sledding on the hills, neighbors in this part of Queen Anne enjoy hot chocolate by the fire.
Not only were people out sledding, but many enjoyed the opportunity to use their cross country gear on the streets.
So what are your favorite things to do while being snowed in? Clean the house? Bake more cookies? Blog on the computer? Watch YouTube? Send us your favorite links to video at tips@queenannevoice.com so we can entertain ourselves!
This one is a little bit more on the adult side (warning: language may be offensive.), but it is hilarious. Eddie Izzard, an English comedian, does that background audio.
Skiers, snowboarders and sledders were having the time of the lives late last night and early this morning on the Counterbalance.
“Queen Anne Avenue North had been groomed into a urban-class slope, with some people building small jumps near the base at Roy Street,” writes Candace Heckman on SeattlePI.com’s Big Blog.
And by this morning, “Queen Anne Avenue was strewn with beer cans, cardboard and broken plastic.” (Photos by ChrisB. Many more photos here.)
See ratings and reviews of
