Western Washington Severe Weather December 2008 Day9 3:15pm

Round 3 - Snow falling again in South Kitsap.



1:55pm and teensy snow flakes are falling steadily. The morning began with friends and family calling to offer rides to the store or to stay over during the next stage of the December storm. There are currently 2 blizzard warnings in effect in Washington, surely a first in my time in the state. I opted for the ride into town to pick up milk and cream. They are predicting snowfall in my area to be between 3 and 24 inches! If more than about 5 inches falls on the already frozen brittle branches, I fear the power will go out leaving me without heat. I decided it was about time I remedied that, so tried to stop by the local farm/hardware store (I like to shop local when I can). Their tiny parking lot was complete chaos, lines coming and going, cars competing for spots to park that didn't exist. We drove in and out, deciding to skip that particular chaos for one that had at least more parking. A quick call ahead to verify they had a kerosene heater was a good decision, they put the last one on hold for me until I could get there. The local Ace hardware was very busy also, but so much more orderly. The employees were happy and plentiful and helpful! Heater, funnel, kerosene, batteries and still I was out the door in less than 20 minutes. Fabulous!

It's 3:15pm now, the tiny flakes have gotten a little bigger and are still falling steadily. I can no longer fully trust the MSN sidebar temperature, as it gave me a huge scare last night when it reported that it was 12 degrees! My window thermometer read 23, and a friend called and verified a similar temp. The window thermometer had been pretty consistently within 3 or 4 degrees of the MSN sidebar reading. The window reading is now 26, the MSN reading is 21.

Looks like I missed the boat with the friend that offered to have me weather the storm over there. They stocked up on yummy chicken Gorgonzola salad, home made pizza with ice cream for desert along with several varieties of heart 'warming' beverage choices for the adults. A slew of movies to watch and stack of celebrity gossip mags. BOOO!!!!



This is what the winter storm warning says:

Seattle/Bremerton Area
Winter Storm Warning:
Issued at: 12:07 PM PST 12/20/08, expires at: 5:00 PM PST 12/20/08
Winter storm warning remains in effect from 4 pm this afternoon to 10 am pst Sunday, A winter storm warning remains in effect from 4 pm this afternoon to 10 am pst Sunday. A major winter storm is on tap for later today into Sunday. Heavy snow is expected to develop along the coast and then spread into the interior of western Washington early this evening. Heaviest snow will occur on the kitsap peninsula, along hood canal, and from olympia and chehalis west to the central coast near ocean shores. 10 to 18 inches of snow is expected close to the hood canal. Other locations within this area should get 5 to 12 inches of snow.


The heaviest snowfall is expected between 7 pm tonight and 4 am Sunday morning. Late tonight into Sunday morning, freezing rain is possible in grays harbor county and the lower chehalis valley. If more precipitation occurs in the form of freezing rain than snow, then an ice storm would be possible with ice accumulations in excess of one quarter of an inch. This is not a certainty but should be kept in mind. Ice storms are capable of causing power lines and large tree branches to snap and cause major travel disruptions. Precautionary/preparedness actions, A winter storm warning means significant amounts of snow, sleet, and ice are expected or occurring. Strong winds are also possible. This will make travel very hazardous or impossible.

I expect this to be updated soon, as it is snowing now, and has been since around 2pm.