Power was restored Thursday to all but about 1,600 Clallam County Public Utility District customers in the Joyce area as another storm pushed into the North Olympic Peninsula.
Before those customers will have power again, a transmission line down in an Elwha River canyon must be restored, the PUD said.
Heavy, consistent rainfall is expected to push the Bogachiel River above its flood stage this morning near LaPush before receding around noon.
Minor flooding was also possible Thursday evening for the Elwha and Dungeness rivers, the National Weather Service said. Both rivers will remain under a flood watch through Saturday morning.
The onslaught of rain and, in some areas, heavy wind, this week prompted the three Clallam County commissioners to declare a state of emergency during a special meeting Thursday.
As of 9 p.m. Thursday, state Highway 112 from about Joyce to Clallam Bay remained closed to through traffic due to fallen trees and other debris.
A tree falling at about 9 p.m. blocked the northbound lane of U.S. Highway 101 at mile post 167, 10 miles north of Klaloch, in West Jefferson County, while in East Jefferson County, a tree blocked both lanes of Highway 101 at mile post 303 near Brinnon, and another tree blocked the highway at mile post 296 near Quilcene, the state Department of Transportation said.
Joyce power
Jeff Beaman, PUD spokesman, couldn’t estimate a time when Joyce, west of Port Angeles, will have power fully restored.
On Thursday evening, work crews began cutting a new road through forest to access the down transmission line in an Elwha River canyon.
Beaman said that crews didn’t expect to begin restoring the line until 5 a.m. today.
The PUD was juggling dozens of outages throughout the county Thursday.
“It’s all over the place,” Beaman said. “They are scattered. One here; one there.”
Everyone expect those without power in the Joyce area were expected to have electricity restored by today.
Electrical power to Port Angeles customers was restored by early Thursday morning, after 4,846 customers lost power Wednesday evening.
An estimated 12,000 — including the entire West End — were in the dark Wednesday night.
Power to the West End was restored Thursday afternoon after the Bonneville Power Administration, using a helicopter, located and removed trees that had fallen on its transmission line between Port Angeles and Sappho.
State of emergency
Jamye Wisecup, Clallam County Emergency Management Department program coordinator, said the declaration of a state of emergency will allow the county to seek federal dollars to cover storm damage and to waive the bid process for contractors in case they are needed to assist the county public works department.
The county’s emergency operations center was reactivated Thursday afternoon in response to the return of wind and rain.
Forks Mayor Nedra Reed said the city is prepared to open an emergency shelter if the West End town loses power again.
Vince Cook, Makah environmental manager, said the tribe is also ready to open its own shelter to provide food and heat for those on the reservation in Neah Bay if power is lost for more than 36 hours.
On Thursday, winds topped 45 mph in Neah Bay and Forks, 30 mph in Port Angeles — and 107 mph at Hurricane Ridge.
“We got hammered pretty hard last night,” said Ross Tyler, Clallam County engineer.
Port Townsend had sustained winds of over 30 mph.
Tyler said that eight roads — Palo Alto, Blue Mountain, O’Brien, Township Line, Deer Park, Old Mill, Dan Kelly and Joyce-Piedmont — had fallen trees on them that couldn’t be removed Thursday because they were in power lines.
The PUD could not shut the power off on those lines at the time to allow the county road crews to remove them, he said. Most of the roads were passable, Tyler added.
The storm was terrifying for some.
Melissa Smith said that her mother was nearly hit by a falling tree while she was driving to her home in the foothills at the very south end of Dan Kelly Road.
Smith, who lives at the same home, said via cell phone that her 61-year-old father had to walk down to the car and escort her back.
“My mom, she was so scared,” said Smith, 31. “She didn’t think she was going to make it.”
Trees, bigger than her car, also have fallen in her driveway.
“They are just monstrous,” she said.
“My parents,” who have lived there for over 30 years, “say they have never seen anything like it,” she said.
One Mt. Pleasant Road couple who live at around 1,300 feet reported that their anemometer recorded a 127-mph gust, Beaman said.
While rain will continue for the rest of the week, winds are forecast to be fairly calm for the lowlands Saturday.
East Jefferson County
No major damage in East Jefferson County was reported, but county Emergency Operations Manager Bob Hamlin said that there has been “a whole lot of little stuff going on.”
Hamlin said reports have come in across the county of downed trees, mud slides, plugged culverts and spotty power outages.
“But nothing major or significant,” Hamlin said. “The blockages were all cleared, the power came back on and I don’t see that we have had an unusual amount of car crashes due to weather.
“Mostly right now, we are working on preventative stuff such as sandbagging property in the southern part of the county and reminding people to stay prepared.”
Also, Hamlin said, the high wind that has rattled East Jefferson County were expected to die out after Thursday nights final gusts.
“That should be the last of the goodies for some time,” Hamlin said.
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Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsuladailynews.com.
Reporter Erik Hidle contributed to this story.
