Clallam 2 Fire-Rescue has responded to more than a half-dozen vehicle accidents in the last couple of weeks. Many of these have been single vehicle rollover crashes that could have been prevented, district officials say.
Road conditions recently have been treacherous in many areas an there is plenty of winter weather ahead for drivers on the North Olympic Peninsula. Roads and highways locally are subject to sudden weather changes often called “micro bursts,” where road surfaces can turn from wet to frozen in a few minutes.
While transportation officials keep our highways treated with deicing solution and sand we are in winter weather and this means drivers must slow down and drive defensively.
District officials advise drivers to watch for signs of ice crystals reflecting on the road surface — a sure sign of frozen pavement — to be alert to “black ice” on the roadways, and to take note of shady areas that seldom seem to thaw.
Travel tips from Clallam County Fire District 2:
Before you begin your winter driving ask yourself, do you really need to make the trip?
Maybe it is best to postpone your driving until the weather improves. Waiting a few hours until road surfaces improve can prevent an accident or save a life. If you must drive in inclement weather give yourself additional time to arrive at your destination. This takes the pressure off and allows you to arrive safely at your destination.
Drive at reduced speeds, stay alert to changing road conditions, and increase the distance between you and other vehicles.
The Washington Department of Transportation has only 14 employees to work the state highways from Lake Crescent to the Hood Canal bridge including the areas in Port Townsend, Fort Flagler, Sequim, Port Angeles, Lake Sutherland, and Joyce.
Local, regional and state highway crews treat roadways and sometimes within only a few hours the weather changes and rains can wash away treatment solutions only to freeze again within a short time. Your local fire districts and law enforcement officials urge all drivers to slow down and drive with due regard during potentially icy conditions.
Washington DOT has provided the following plow routes listing priority roads and highways for the Clallam County area.
Highway snowfall priorities
The No. 1 priority for Port Angeles is the four-lane S curves and hills at Morse Creek. There will be one, 10 yard Pal-Lift truck continuously working this area.
Port Angeles East, when the event requires it we will add a second truck to the Morse Creek route, that truck will be a five-yard Pal-Lift. When conditions allow, one truck will break away from Morse creek area and head east working the four-lane to the Sequim bypass area. A third 10-yard truck will work its way out and cover from the Sequim area to Discovery Bay.
Area 3 East has two 10-yard trucks and one five-yard Pal-Lift at a Discovery Bay shed. Discovery Bay’s No. 1 priority will be to take a 10-yard truck, starting at US Highway 101 milepost 281.4 and head for the hill tops on State Route 104 work its way to the Hood Canal bridge and back to US Highway 101.
The No. 1 priority for Port Angeles West on its way out it will help the city of Port Angeles by plowing State Route 117 and US Highway 101 MP 248 to 244.3 (Cameron Road). The west side has a five-yard side tip and a 10-yard Pal-Lift.
With heavy accumulations of snow, trucks team up for tandem plowing.
