Associated Press and Herald staff
SEATTLE — Snow caused a rash of minor traffic accidents and delayed school openings in the south Snohomish County area early today as stormy weather lashed the Pacific Northwest.
As much as three inches of snow was reported by daybreak around Mill Creek and two inches in areas around Lynnwood.
Sporadic power outages were reported in the Monroe-Snohomish areas. Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office reported three inches of water on the road at 56th Avenue SE and Lowell-Larimer Road, about 15 feet wide, from a manhole.
Snow was coming down hard earlier this morning on parts of Camano Island that usually don’t get snow. Snow was sticking to trees, but not streets, on the west side of the island. The east side of Camano, and Stanwood, was spared. No power outages were reported in the Stanwood-Camano area.
The National Weather Service said winds could gust to 60 mph along the coast and over Admiralty Inlet, between Everett and Seattle, signaling the arrival of a warm front.
Rain was expected to follow the snow, and snow on the ground was not expected to last long below 1,500 feet elevation, but accumulations of up to 18 inches were forecast for the Cascades.
Snow and ice was reported on the road and traction advisories were issued early Wednesday for most of the state’s Cascade highway passes.
Warnings for nearly a foot of snow were issued for much of eastern Oregon and Eastern Washington.
To the south, chains were required on Interstate 5 through the Siskiyou Mountains of southern Oregon and northern California because of snow. Oregon State Police reported numerous spinouts and jackknifed trucks overnight but no injuries.
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