Snow’s aftermath hits Pierce County with slides, outages, closures
A day of snowfall across Pierce County yesterday brought residents out in flocks to relish in the late-winter wonderland.
But today, residents have to deal with the icy aftermath.
Whether its landslides blocking roads, lingering power outages and difficult travel through mountain passes, here’s everything you need to know for weathering the snow’s effects.
Road closures
At around 2:30 a.m. Saturday morning, a slide occurred on State Route 509 from mile point 4 near Taylor Way to milepost 5 near Norpoint Way. Both directions are still blocked, and the roadway remains closed.
A section of East Pioneer Road in Puyallup is also experiencing blockage due to a landslide. Both directions of the road from 33rd Street Southeast to Highway 162 are closed, with no known time of reopening.
After closing portions of Interstate 90 in both directions due to major snowfall and traffic concerns, both Stevens Pass and Snoqualmie Pass are reopened for travel.
Snoqualmie Pass received 22 inches of snow overnight, and chains are required on all vehicles that pass through. Same with Stevens Pass, which reopened at 10 a.m. today.
Power outages
About 900 customers still lack power according to the Pierce County power outage map at 10 a.m. Saturday.
The majority of those are Puget Sound Energy customers, with 735 customers waiting for power in Pierce County.
PSE is not able to provide restoration times in some areas that lost power from yesterday’s snowfall, the organization shared in a news alert.
A damage assessment is necessary to estimate the time of repair for lost power, which can take at least 24 hours following the start of the outage. Timelines can take longer in areas where access is limited and the crew’s safety is a concern.
Peninsula Light Company customers are also experiencing a widespread outage with 135 customers lacking power. A large portion of the outages are on the south end of Fox Island, according to the site’s outage map.
