PORTLAND, Ore. -- A combination of ice, rain, fog and wind were enough to cause nearly a dozen wrecks in less than hour on Saturday, prompting ODOT to close Interstate 84 access to the Columbia River Gorge. More: Alarming hour of accidents
Meantime, Washington state closed SR-14 to semis due to icy conditions.
A jacknifed semi has temporarily closed Oregon 18, the Sheridan-Willamina HIghway, at milepost 25.
Drivers were warned to proceed cautiously, if absolutely necessary, and check for road updates at
Gorge communities should brace for the severe weather forecasters had predicted, which missed metro Portland but was causing traveling problems to the south and east.
Snow accumulation in metro Portland never happened as most Northwest meteorologists had expected, and temperatures hovered in the mid 30s heading into Sunday night. But any dip below freezing, coupled with the steady precipitation, would make travel even more dangerous, according to KGW First Alert Storm Team.
Freezing rain was forecast in the Cascade foothills below the 4,000 foot level until Sunday afternoon, when temperatures across NW Oregon and SW Washington were expected to warm, KGW Meteorologist Rod Hill said.
The
downgraded most Winter Storm Warnings to advisories, which remained in effect throughout the weekend.
Half an inch of snow or a thin layer of freezing rain was still possible, according to KGW Meteorologist Nick Allard, but fears of a repeat of last year had mostly abated, for now.
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Drive with caution
A 55-mile stretch of Hwy 34 was closed overnight from the Oregon Coast to Philomath due to icy conditions but no one was injured, according to ODOT.
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Several collisions and accidents were reported on I-5 in the Salem area due to ice; however, Marion County and Salem city officials reported that area roads were sanded in the event of major accumulation.
Warm-up & rain follow week of record cold
The weekend wallop of winter came after a week of record low temperatures across NW Oregon.
Low temperature records fell almost daily in Portland, with most mornings beginning in the teens. East of Portland, Gorge and foothill communities dealt with gale-force winds and below-zero conditions most of the week.
More: Radar | Conditions | Forecast
During the ongoing cold snap, power outages have continued to affect the Metro area. Portland General Electric crews have been kept busy, with pockets of Portland losing power here and there, but electric usage peaked and never neared maximum capacity as it did during the 2008 severe winter weather event. Real-time PGE outages were accessible online.
Temperatures in Portland dropped to a frigid low of 14 degrees Thursday morning at the Portland International Airport, dipping below the previous record low of 16 set back in 1972.
Burst pipes flooded dozens of homes across metro Portland, according to Fire & Rescue, as subfreezing temperatures took their toll. Pulmbers told KGW that they were responding to many distressed and foreclosed homes with pipe problems because the heat had been turned off. MORE: Tips on protecting your pipes
MORE: School/weather closures
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A 7-day forecast called for temperatures in the mid-to-high 30s starting Sunday.
