An arctic blast that has kept the North Olympic Peninsula on ice for a week is expected to end today, thanks to a weather system that brings both snow and a warming trend to the area, according to the National Weather Service.
The system brought flurries to Forks and Sequim by Monday afternoon and was predicted to drop about an inch of snow in West End and Port Townsend areas, said Josh Smith, meteorologist for the Weather Service in Seattle.
Snow flurries, possible in Port Angeles, were not expected to leave measurable snow on the ground, Smith said.
The snow is expected to turn to rain by late morning, and temperatures should warm into the 40s, he said.
That’s a far cry from weekend overnight lows, which dipped into the mid-teens in many lowland regions of the Peninsula.
Smith said that the region should return to a wetter, warmer, more typical December-type pattern.
However, the thaw is too late for at least two buildings in Clallam County, where burst pipes closed the Dungeness River Audubon Center and chased residents from six apartment units in Port Angeles.
The Audubon center at 2151 W. Hendrickson Road in Sequim received damage after a pipe burst and flooded the visitor center.
The center will be closed for repairs until Dec. 18, said Powell Jones, executive director.
A frozen attic pipe burst Sunday in the Highland Commons Senior Apartments, 1703 Melody Circle in Port Angeles, and flooded six apartments on three floors of the building, said resident Marcie Miller.
“Water was pouring from every hole in the ceiling; light fixtures, smoke alarms and sprinklers. It was ugly,” Miller said.
There was surprisingly little trouble on the county’s roads due to frozen roads, said Ron Cameron, chief criminal deputy for the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office.
The sheriff’s detachment office in Beaver pipes froze, leaving the deputies without water in the building, but otherwise the cold weekend was quiet, Cameron said.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5070, or at arwyn.rice@peninsuladailynews.com.
