City of Marysville closes activities, services in wake of snowfall, expects more to come

MARYSVILLE — Tuesday, Jan. 17, saw the city of Marysville extending its three-day Martin Luther King Jr. holiday into a four-day weekend for many of its activities and services, due to heavy snowfall creating difficult driving conditions, with even more severe conditions predicted for the week ahead.

MARYSVILLE — Tuesday, Jan. 17, saw the city of Marysville extending its three-day Martin Luther King Jr. holiday into a four-day weekend for many of its activities and services, due to heavy snowfall creating difficult driving conditions, with even more severe conditions predicted for the week ahead.

“Our inclement weather policy is that we close those down when the school district does,” said Doug Buell, public information officer for the city of Marysville. “This means Parks and Recreation classes, Marysville University and the Ken Baxter Community Center are all closed.”

Because it’s the third week of the month, no City Council meeting for Marysville was scheduled for Jan. 17.

Buell reported that city of Marysville street crews started work early in the morning of Jan. 17 and are on 24-hour coverage shifts.

“Since the early morning hours, they’ve been sanding the primary arterials and routes, de-icing the overpasses and bridges, and paying particular attention to Sunnyside and Soper Hill Road,” Buell said. “Those eastside foothills are always a challenge.”

Buell anticipated that street crews would tackle the secondary roads next, but in the meantime, he passed on some words of caution from Marysville Mayor Jon Nehring.

“As the mayor would tell anyone right now, if you don’t need to be out out, stay off the roads,” Buell said. “If you do need to go out on the roads, take it slow and stay warm. Either way, be prepared and take the necessary precautions.”

As of Jan. 17, Getchell Hill Road is the only street that’s closed in the city of Marysville.

For more information on the city of Marysville’s snow and ice routes, log onto http://marysvillewa.gov/index.aspx?nid=423.

The Snohomish County road-clearing priority map is located online at http://publicworks.snoco.org/RoadMaint/snowIcePlanRouteMap.html.

A Winter Weather Advisory for the Puget Sound interior lowlands is in effect until 4 p.m. on Jan. 17, which is set to be followed by a Winter Storm Warning running through the evenings of Jan. 17 and Wednesday, Jan. 18.

Snow accumulation of 1-3 inches is possible for Tuesday, with localized snow falling heavier in some areas, but a rain shadow from the Olympics may shield much of this impact from southwest Snohomish County and northwest King County.

The forecast for Wednesday is currently calling for 5-10 inches of snow accumulation, with snow starting around the morning commute and continuing throughout the day. This system is expected to bring windy conditions to the area as well. Snowfall should taper off significantly into Wednesday night, but the afternoon commute could be treacherous.

The transition back to moderate temperatures and rain is tentatively expected to start from the south on the morning of Thursday, Jan. 19, but is not likely to reach our area until sometime later in the day. The transition to rain following a large snow event will likely produce slushy conditions, with a possibility of pooling on roads and urban flooding in low areas and small streams. No river flooding is forecast at this time.

The National Weather Service is forecasting this as a very significant snowfall event, with accumulations deeper than we’ve seen in the last few years.

Remember to carry extra-warm dry clothes if you are on the roads, stop at the grocery store soon and stock up on anything you may need for the next couple of days, check your flashlights, fill your gas tank and check on your neighbors.

Snowstorms like this can cause power outages as the snow accumulates on the tree limbs and wire. According to the National Weather Service, this will be the most snow we’ve seen in years.

For the latest forecasts from the National Weather Service, log onto http://weather.gov and type your location into the “Local Forecast” search bar.