MYNORTHWEST NEWS

Snow, ice close schools, mess with morning commute

Jan 17, 2024, 6:40 AM | Updated: 6:59 am

Snow and ice arrive overnight in Puget Sound region. (KIRO 7)...

Snow and ice arrive overnight in Puget Sound region. (KIRO 7)

(KIRO 7)

Drivers are dealing with treacherous conditions and several schools are closed or delayed following a dump of overnight snow and ice.

Whatcom County got the brunt of the overnight storm.

The main highways are easily passable, but the sideroads, especially in the suburbs, may be a problem.

Several schools are closed or had to be delayed on Wednesday due to either icy roads or burst pipes.

That included school districts in Bellevue, Kent, Bellingham, South Whidbey, and Hood Canal.

Updated information: School closings and delays

Most precipitation from Seattle on north tapered off early Wednesday morning, with temperatures hovering just above freezing.

However, there are still plenty of icy spots on sidewalks. And although the worst of the winter weather is over, there could still be some additional light and spotty freezing rain.

KIRO 7 meteorologist Nick Allard writes once the rain passes, there more than likely will be a convergence zone in King and Snohomish Counties that will increase precipitation enough to bring the snow level down. That means some snow and wet snow will be possible later Wednesday, even with temps warming up.

Other icy news: Residents skate on Lake Washington during frigid temps

North of Mt. Vernon up into Whatcom County, though, at least a couple inches of snow are expected to accumulate. There’s also a chance that some freezing rain might cut down on totals initially. Even so, there could be up to four inches of snow in the area by midday.

I-90 at Snoqualmie Pass was also closed early Wednesday morning due to icy roads and multiple conditions. That included one driver who hit a Washington State Patrol trooper’s car which was at the scene of a separate collision along eastbound I-90.

Another batch of moisture will come in Thursday, likely turning out to be just rain in the lowlands but there could be some brief snow mixed in as the rainfall moves in. There could be some accumulating snow again nearer the Canadian border.

The last of the cold air will be gone by Thursday or Friday and go into the weekend. 50 degrees could be the high by Saturday with rain continuing.

Contributing: KIRO 7 News

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