No one here gets out alive.
This is what Seattle looked like yesterday
And last night was just as bad.
North/South: Interstate 5 is partially closed not too far from me, in Fife, and is completely closed for 20 miles through the Centralia/Chehalis area (exit 88 through exit 68). US 101 is washed out in a number of spots.
East/West: Interstate 90, US 2, US 12, US 97, and SR 202 are all closed because of snow.
If you have something or someone in the Seattle metro area you want to go either east or south, put them on a plane, because “WE’RE ALL GONNA DIEEEEE!!!1!’
Ok, we’re not all gonna die. But certain weather forecasters might if they don’t stop pissing me off with the fear mongering.
Fire Base Blue is hunky dory. We readied up before the snow fell three weeks ago, and we live atop a cliff that overlooks Tacoma’s Commencement Bay (though not really close enough for a decent view).
A nice little town called Orting is being evac’d because they live on a flood zone (why folks bought there, I’ll never understand). This flood zone is also know around here to be THE prime Lahar Zone, which means that if Mt. Rainier ever goes off, they’ll have about 12 minutes to get out of breath before they get dead.
In fun news, I get to drive trhough the middle of some of this so as to keep a very important appointment in just a little bit. I’m feeling kind of silly not having put the fording kit on Buddy as of yet. Let us just hope that my door seals do their job and the water stays below the headlight level (4ft).
Now all we have to do is wait for the high winds to come along and act like a lawnmower to the trees sitting in the super saturated ground. Thankfully for us, I made sure that would not be a problem when we purchased Firebase Blue.
Wish me luck!
I know folks like to live along rivers and all, but seriously, they way folks build haphazardly in flood zones and the wail about how “They said it was a 100 year flood plain!” for the third straight year in a row just makes me cry. That land wasn’t cheap for no reason, folks.
Please, build your house to survive a flood if you live in a flood plain.
The super-computers got it wrong, and the Tropical Front stalled over Central WA instead of moving down over OR and hammering us equally, as it was forecast to do. We have a few high rivers in OR, but nowhere near the problems that were forecast just 24 hours ago.
Central WA, OTH, seems to have soaked up a foot of rain in the lowlands, and add to that some significant snowmelt up to the 8,000 foot level in the mountains, and all that must roll ever onwards to the sea. Too bad if you get in the way.
And it was supposed to be the fire, and not the flood, this time.
Holy crap! Are those whitecaps? Next to the freeway?
David, that is the most evil stretch of road in Washington state – 520, the “floating bridge.” It spans Lake Washington, and it’s pretty typical to see white caps on the windward side of the bridge in any kind of wind. VERY common to get sprayed while driving across in these conditions.
Looks like this photo was taken facing westward / Seattle ways.
The bridge actually MOVES back and forth in high winds. You can get motion sick stuck in traffic. Ask me how I know, I dare you.
This floating bridge will sink, by the way, right to the bottom of the deep Lake Washington.
Your WA tax dollars at work!
Well, better traveling north than south right now…
Last summer Mrs. Drang and I were looking at houses. This was before the real Estate market totally tanked and we thought we’d still be able to sell our current hovel in order to finance a new one. Anyway, we looked t a lot of new construction, and saw many nice places, but it seemed like they were all in areas where we’d eye the river nervously, and smile and nod and back away as the real estate guy assured us the place wasn’t in a flood zone and FEMA said it was all right…
Amazing how many of those developments were identified by name as having been evacuated.
The winds are here – at least in Olympia. Some real window rattlers ! I’d guess about 30+, with much higher gusts. And it’s getting very cold. Which is good news for slowing the snow melt, resulting in less runoff.
Maybe the (underwater) freeways can reopen in a day or two …… or maybe not. Another puzzler the powers that be can sit around for years hiring consultants to study rather than actually doing something about fixing. Second time in 13 months !
I feel bad for the people in harms way, but can’t help giving a thank you and a smile realizing my family members all live on high ground.
The PLAN in Seattle and western Washington in general when snow hits is to pray (or petition) for warm rain. Be it rain then pray it drains fast. Actually ya know DOING something like dikes and drains would be Ya know screwing with the enviorment and we can’t have that ask the tool that runs Seattle.
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Year or so ago we had a major ice storm moving in. One guy on a local radio station popped out with “We’re going to die in the dark!” Guy with him: “What?”
“We’ll all lose power and we’re all gonna die in the dark!” With a chuckle.
About the fourth time he did this I was about to call the station and inform them that if he said it again, I was going to look for a line of sight to where he was; but never heard it again. I think some other people beat me to informing the station that
A: It wasn’t funny, and
B: “I’m gonna find him and kick his ass if he says it again.”