Avalanche danger in the mountain passes

Happy New Year!

Our wish for 2009 goes like this, "Winter, winter ... go away!"

Seriously, we just started winter in Washington and we're already ready for it to be over. The main mountain passes for east-west travel ... the backbone of our state's economy ... are closed today. It looks like Stevens (US 2) and Snoqualmie (I-90) will be closed through the night into tomorrow morning. Eastern Washington is going to get more snow tonight and into tomorrow, too.

We'll have our crews deployed, all available resources are at hand. But even with our best efforts, you should continue to expect winter driving conditions throughout most of Washington.

Here's a shot of crews leading a caravan of folks back off the mountain.