Winter Pummels the Pacific Northwest

Storm dumps over a foot of snow on Pacific Northwest

A winter storm that packed winds of 100 mph and dumped more than a foot of snow in the Pacific Northwest could soon give way to another threat: warmer weather and the potential for flooding. On Wednesday, at least, some residents in Washington state’s capital tried to find a way to enjoy the abundance of snow in a region not used to huge snowfalls.  From Olympia to the Oregon coast, the storm closed schools, caused dozens of flight cancellations and clogged roads with hundreds of accidents.

Olympia had nearly a foot of new snow on the ground by late morning. Nearly 11 inches was measured at the airport Wednesday. The record is 14.2 inches on Jan. 24, 1972. “It’s unusual to get this much snow for western Washington, especially in this amount,” said Dennis D’Amico, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Seattle.

Today’s forecast was for a mix of snow and rain, and the National Weather Service warned that urban and small stream flooding was possible Friday, when another storm was expected to hit the state. Washington residents had plenty of warning as snow showers started over the weekend. With the heavy snow in sight, Seattle and other school districts canceled classes in advance. Alaska Airlines announced late Tuesday that it canceled 38 flights into and out of Seattle and Portland, Ore.

In Oregon, high winds hammered parts of the coast and caused power outages to tens of thousands of customers, with reports of gusts of 110 mph and more. There were no immediate reports of serious damage.

…(SF Gate)

Record Snowfall Hits Parts of Japan

Record-breaking snow accumulations for the month of January were measured Wednesday in Hokkaido as inclement weather continued to pommel the prefecture as well as a wide area of Honshu along the Sea of Japan, the Meteorological Agency said.

In Erimo, Hokkaido, snow accumulations topped 115 cm, making it one of three observation points in Hokkaido that set a new record for January. Meanwhile, heavy snow stranded about 30 cars on a national road Tuesday night in the town, forcing 111 people to evacuate the vehicles and 84 of them to spend the night at nearby community centers.

Snowstorms may continue until Thursday, the agency said, warning of frozen roads and possible avalanches, as well as rough seas off Hokkaido and the Tohoku region.

More than 40 cm of snow fell on areas of Fukushima and Shiga Prefectures during the 24 hours through Wednesday morning. Winds up to 111.24 kph were also clocked at Cape Erimo.

…(Japan Times)

Heavy snow on Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido. An unusually powerful storm hit the city of Iwamizawa on Monday, leaving behind mounds of snow nearly two metres deep. Scientists say they can’t confirm exactly how much snow fell because their measuring instruments were damaged in the blizzard. But the island’s meteorological agency said this is the most snow Iwamizawa has been hit with since records began in 1946. Here, the sheer weight of the snow caused the collapse of a wooden roof. The falling structure knocked over several stoves, setting the building ablaze.

On Tuesday, many bus and train services remained suspended due to snow on the tracks and roadways.

…(NTD)

Gas Use Breaks Record in Turkey

Due to the unseasonably chilly winter weather, Turkey broke a natural gas consumption record on Jan. 16, consuming 178 million cubic meters of natural gas. Energy Ministry officials, however, said an 8 to 10 million cubic meter deficit is not a cause for concern and the deficit stems from the fact that people have consumed more electricity leading to a strain on the natural gas conversion plants, which convert natural gas to electricity. The situation is expected to be resolved by Jan. 21, according to officials.

“This period has not affected residential and industrial natural gas usage and will not affect usage going forward,” the officials said. Meanwhile, Turkey’s state-run pipeline company Botaş’ Executive Board Director and General Manager Fazıl Şenel said the news regarding Botaş urging citizens in the Marmara and Ege regions to move toward secondary fuel sources was partly true.

“There is missing information though. Our citizens need not be concerned. There is no likelihood of natural gas being shut down in either residential or industrial establishments,” he said, adding that companies which were capable of producing electricity for a three to four-day period with secondary fuel sources like oil had already begun to do so.

“It is only for these firms we have applied the natural gas reduction to. This does not affect the average citizen,” said Şenel.

…(Hurriyet Daily News)