Avalanches shut down Pass


October 2, 2008 · Updated 9:20 AM 

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Snoqualmie Pass was closed for four days in a row last week, after heavy snow made the busy highway corridor rife with avalanche risk.

Originally shut down on Tuesday, Jan. 29, the pass reopened briefly Wednesday before an avalanche trapped several cars that afternoon, causing the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to close the pass until early Saturday. The pass closed again for about five hours on Sunday, Feb. 3.

On Jan. 31, Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire declared a state of emergency in response to the severe winter storm that caused hazardous conditions in a number of counties across Washington and closed I-90 across Snoqualmie Pass. Over six feet of snow fell in six days, according to WSDOT.

Cars caught

On Wednesday, Jan. 30, traffic had resumed for a few hours on the pass when a large snow slide near milepost 51 completely blocked the westbound lanes of the interstate highway just before 3 p.m. that day.

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