January 10, 2008

Snow storm blankets region, delays schools

Journal photo by Stephen McFadden

Snow Removal. A Washington State Department of Transportation snow plow makes its way into Lind on Tuesday morning, clearing snow along the way. According to local reports, 7.1 inches of snow fell in Ritzville since Sunday.

By Jennifer Larsen

News editor

Area residents woke up to a thick blanket of snow Wednesday morning, causing delays and closures for some school students across eastern Washington.

Ritzville woke up to six inches of snow on the ground, according to Greg and Connie Galbreath, who take official temperature and weather readings daily.

Galbreath’s snow-on-the-ground readings for the week were: Jan. 8, four inches; Jan. 7, two inches; Jan. 6, one; Jan. 4, one; Jan. 3, one inch.

Buses and students were delayed two hours in the Ritzville School District.

Lind School District started two hours late and cancelled preschool for the day. Superintendent Dave Thomas estimated about three to five inches of snow on the ground Wednesday morning, depending on where the snow was drifted.

Washtucna School District kept to a normal bus and school schedule.

State Routes 194 and 72 in Whitman County were fully blocked and closed Tuesday night around 9:30 p.m., with opening not expected until at least Wednesday afternoon.

Local, county and state crews were on the roads early Tuesday morning to battle the barrage of snow falling and the icy roads left from the previous night while emergency response units responded to countless accidents.

Area schools weren’t delayed because of the weather Tuesday morning, but two school administrations closed the doors early when the snowfall didn’t subside.

Lind School District sent students home at 12:30 p.m. and Benge closed at 1:30 p.m. Ritzville, LaCrosse and Washtucna continued with the normal school day. Lind schools closed at 1:30 p.m. on Monday.

All practices for the LaCrosse-Washtucna Tigercats were canceled, as was the high school basketball game with Rosalia Tuesday night in Washtucna. The game is tentatively rescheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 22.

According to WSDOT’s Web site at noon on Tuesday, highways around Rosalia were compact snow and ice.

At that same time, according to WSDOT’s weather station at the U.S. 395/I-90 junction, winds were blowing eight mph from the southeast and visibility was limited to one mile. Surface temperature was 31 degrees while the air temperature was 30 degrees.

A snow advisory was in effect for the upper Columbia Basin, including Ritzville, Grand Coulee, Odessa, Wilbur and Coulee City, from early Tuesday morning until early Wednesday morning.

The advisory indicated that a cold and moist Pacific storm would steadily drop snow over the area Tuesday morning and through that evening when a second storm would hit Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning. Total accumulations of three to five inches were expected.

In the Palouse area, including LaCrosse, heavy snow warnings were in effect until Wednesday morning. It was predicted that four to seven inches would fall during two storms on Tuesday and early Wednesday.

Winter Storm warnings were in effect Tuesday across eastern Washington and parts of Oregon and Idaho.