After a major snowstorm slammed Western Washington Friday and Saturday, get ready for this: Two new weather systems are expected to bring more snow late Sunday and Monday to South Sound.
The National Weather Service announced early Sunday that lowlands could see 1-4 inches of snow by late in the day and another 5-8 inches late Monday through early Tuesday.
If that wasn’t enough, there’s a chance of rain, sleet or freezing rain late Monday into Tuesday.
That’s bad news for those still trying to dig out of the 10 inches of snow that fell Friday into Saturday morning in Olympia and elsewhere in South Sound. Seven to 10 inches fell Friday night and Saturday morning across the lowlands of Pierce County.
It also could mean that those without power remain that way.
Puget Sound Energy announced on its outage map Sunday that it had restored power to about 115,000 customers but that about 20,000 customers still were without electricity.
According to the map, many of those customers are in Thurston County, including in Lacey and northwest Olympia. In some cases, according to the map data, power won’t be restored until Monday.
Some outages are still being reported in east Pierce County, but power appeared largely restored in the Tacoma and Seattle areas on Sunday. Outages dot Vashon Island, the Everett area and Whatcom County, according to PSE.
Temperatures the next few days will hover around the freezing mark overnight and into the day. That’s not as cold as an earlier forecast, but still cold enough to take steps to protect household pipes.
According to Chambers Construction and Restoration in Tacoma:
▪ If you’re leaving home for the day or weekend, maintain inside heat at 55 degrees or above, including in the basement. In extreme cold, open cabinet doors attached to exterior walls that contain plumbing. That allows warm air to reach water pipes.
▪ Inside or outside, insulate any vulnerable pipe with foam insulation that can be purchased at any hardware store.
▪ Outside your home, disconnect hoses. Attach protective insulated domes.
▪ “Some customers choose to run cold-water faucets constantly,” owner Spencer Chambers said. It’s also a way to monitor the freezing of pipes.
Other weather-related news:
▪ Sunday’s Justin Timberlake concert at the Tacoma dome has been postponed, according to a news release. As for his Monday show, he is still expected to take the stage.
▪ The Port of Seattle, which operates Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, is urging passengers to check their flight status before traveling.
▪ Amtrak Cascades trains 506, 507 and 517, which run between Seattle and Portland, were canceled Sunday due to inclement weather.
“Full scheduled service will be restored pending improved conditions,” Amtrak announced in a service alert.
This story was originally published February 10, 2019 11:20 AM.
