Hundreds of drivers stuck overnight on US 2 near Skykomish
Jan 13, 2020, 2:18 PM
US 2 between Gold Bar and Stevens Pass on Monday. (WSDOT)
(WSDOT)
State troopers say hundreds of vehicles were stuck on the pass in the Skykomish area overnight — including three buses full of middle schoolers.
Just after 8 p.m., the decision was made to close the Highway 2 pass just east of Gold Bar all the way up to the summit. Heavy snow on low-hanging trees — along with icy roads — made for extremely “scary” conditions.
Temps to dip; Tuesday expected to offer break from snow
Trooper Heather Axtman says cars were stuck on the road for up to 15 hours. There were reports of people running low on food and fuel.
“Several trees were down, several power lines were down, and it just wasn’t a safe situation,” she told KIRO Radio. “It’s a scary, scary reminder that if you’re going to go up on the pass, how prepared you need to be and to expect the unexpected. People were running out of fuel, and they were low on food and low on water.”
Monday morning, troopers worked with transportation officials to move all westbound vehicles in a convoy down from the pass to safety. Both directions are now clear of cars and closed until further notice.
We were able to successfully set up a convoy with @wsdot_passes for everyone, including 3 buses full of middle school students, that were stuck overnight in Skykomish! #welcomeback #drivesafe pic.twitter.com/KsQrWXZUjj
— Trooper H. Axtman (@wspd7pio) January 13, 2020
