More fun than hassle

Published 9:00 pm Sunday, January 9, 2005

Snohomish County’s snowman population exploded Sunday.

Fender benders and drivers sliding off roads in the morning snowfall were reported, but the fun seemed to outweigh the headaches as 1 inch to 4 inches accumulated in the lowlands of Snohomish and King counties.

Dan Bates / The Herald Everett youngsters roll up huge snowballs at Grand Avenue Park on Sunday before turning them into a snow fort. From far back left are Cameron McCaffree, 11, Boyce King, 12, Zelina McCaffree, 13, Nora Gunning, 12, Fearghal Gunning, 14, Oisin Gunning, 15, and Arian Anderson, 14.

No major auto accidents were reported by the State Patrol, the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office or city police departments in the county as of Sunday evening. Only a couple of accidents handled by the State Patrol involved injuries and those were minor, according to a trooper at the district headquarters in Marysville.

Roadways were wet and sometimes slushy but clear and open. The only dicey condition reported by the state Department of Transportation was slush on Highway 530 in both directions between Arlington and Darrington. Stevens Pass received less than half an inch of snow Sunday morning and the road was open.

The snow had stopped in most areas by about 10:30 a.m., said Jay Neher, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service’s office in Seattle. The mini-snowstorm, which started about 3:30 a.m., had not been predicted but a chance of it occurring had, Neher said.

“When that’s predicted sometimes you get it and sometimes you don’t,” Neher said.

The snow began to melt but not before kids and adults alike got out in it. Boyce King, 12, of Everett and several friends were among them. The “snowball” effect for them became real when they rolled some of it.

“It got bigger as we rolled it, but to make it an even circle we had to pack some on,” King said.

The ball rolled from Grand Avenue Park into the street, so the group had to roll it back so it wouldn’t block traffic, said Zelina McCaffree, 13.

They had planned to build a snowman, said Zelina’s brother, Cameron, 11.

“It was too heavy to lift up so we built a snow fort,” Cameron McCaffree said. The group added onto the ball and then carved a hole in the middle, big enough to hold three people, he said.

The group also had a snowball fight, which Cameron called “kind of a tie,” and some were out for more than three hours. He was “pretty cold” by the end, he said.

Ron and Jennifer Ewalt, who live near Lake Stevens, helped their 3-year-old daughter, Bree, build her first snowman. They used charcoal for eyes, a carrot for a nose and two twigs for arms.

“Just a whole lot of fun in the snow,” Ron Ewalt said.

No more snow is expected until at least Tuesday night, according to National Weather Service predictions. Until then, the temperature is forecast to dip into the 20s at night while daytime highs are expected to reach 38 to 40 degrees. Precipitation Tuesday night could be rain or snow, but rain is more likely, the Weather Service said.

Reporter Bill Sheets: 425-339-3439 or sheets@heraldnet.com.