Video: Many Seattle streets still a mess, more snow on the way

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SEATTLE - A winter storm warning has been issued as another round of snow is headed for Washington and Oregon.

“Most of us won’t see a single flake until we head into the late night, early morning hours, mainly after midnight,” said KING 5 Meteorologist Shannon O’Donnell.

The warning from the National Weather Service is in effect until 4 a.m. Wednesday and includes Western Whatcom and Skagit Counties, Everett, Hood Canal and the Eastern Puget Sound lowlands.

Two to 6 inches of snow is possible overnight across the Puget Sound region, 5 to 8 inches in the Spokane and Coeur d'Alene area, and 1 to 2 feet of snow in the mountains.

Portland also will see 2 to 3 inches, and heavier snow in the Oregon foothills, and 1 to 2 feet in the coast range and the mountains.

Wednesday morning, the snow level should rise to about 500 feet and another 2 inches of snow is possible for areas such as the Kitsap Peninsula, Hood Canal and the Puget Sound Convergence Zone.

By midday Wednesday, the snow will change to sleet, but the Cascades could see another foot of new snow at that point.

The models for later in the week finally show some relief, with lows above freezing forecast for Saturday and Sunday.

Frustrated drivers

Those temperatures can't come soon enough for frustrated drivers dealing with icy roads that simply aren't melting.

Major freeways and main streets in central Puget Sound are clear, but many side streets have compact or slushy snow that have iced over. Driving is rough and bumpy, and navigating side streets and snow-covered hills is still difficult.

KING 5 photojournalist Brad Booker said things were so bad on some streets along Capitol Hill, drivers who had been inching along started getting frustrated and would pull into the middle an intersection simply because they were tired of being stuck at a red light.

Bus riders can also expect more long waits. About half of King County Metro bus routes are still cancelled or delayed. Riders can check the Metro Web site for the latest schedule, but the most up-to-date changes may not appear on the site.

Pierce County Transit were operating on snow routes, with some reroutes and delays. Sounder commuter trains were running on holiday schedule. Check Sound Transit for updates.

Latest traffic updates

Late-breaking weather impacts

Stranded passengers finally flying out of Sea-Tac

Alaska and Horizon airlines resumed near-normal schedules Tuesday at Sea-Tac, and the airport says all stranded passengers should be gone by Wednesday. Thousands of people were stranded since the weekend by cancellations due to winter weather.

Alaska and Horizon account for about half the Sea-Tac flights.

Portland flights have resumed but are still restricted by snow and displaced planes and flight crews.

The airlines say passengers should check flight status at home before heading for the airport.

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Few power outages, garbage collections

Utility crews are making significant progress restoring power to customers. Scattered outages were being reported Tuesday night.

If your trash is piling up and overflowing, you're not alone. Waste Management has cancelled collections in many areas due to icy roads. 

In West Seattle, it's been two weeks since the last time trucks have made it around to collect the garbage. Seattle Public Utilities says it's been tough with all the snow and ice. 

Curbside service was cancelled Tuesday for Kitsap County, Snohomish County, most of Skagit County, and King County north of Auburn and Federal Way, but collection will continue in south King County, as access allows.

Mountain passes, ski resorts

At the Cascade passes, traction tires were required at Snoqualmie, Stevens and White passes. Snow totals reported were 12 inches at Snoqualmie, 9 inches at Stevens and 11 inches at White.

If you're headed up the mountains to ski, Crystal Mountain reported 6 new inches of snow overnight. Stevens reported 5 inches of new snow and Summit West reported 9 inches. Check ski reports.

Inland Northwest to get Christmas storm

Parts of Spokane and Northern Idaho are expecting to see 5 to 8 inches of new snow Christmas Eve and Christmas day. The Northern Idaho Panhandle, Northeast mountains and Central Panhandle mountains could see up to a foot of snow.

Holiday travelers with plans to drive in the Colville, Deer Park and Sandpoint areas should keep a close eye on the forecast.

I-84 in Oregon open

Interstate 84 has been reopened east of Portland in the Columbia Gorge after heavy snow and whiteout conditions closed the major highway Saturday night, blocking hundreds of semitrailer trucks.

High winds and a slick surface kept the interstate closed from Troutdale at Portland's east edge to Hood River as commercial truckers hunkered down at truck stops. Transportation crews worked through the night to remove drifts, plow and sand the road.

City buses got stuck in snow, parts of major highways were closed, and traffic slowed to crawl as the Portland area struggled Monday to cope with one of its worst in years.

Gov. Ted Kulongoski late Monday declared a state of emergency in Multnomah County, freeing the Oregon National Guard to send six Humvees to the Portland suburb of Gresham, where officers, firefighters and paramedics were having trouble reaching destinations that are buried in a foot of snow. A dozen soldiers from the 141st Brigade Support Battalion were sent to operate the vehicles.

The National Weather Service forecasts warmer temperatures and rain by Friday.

The forecast projects high temperatures of around 40 by the weekend — not hot, but warm enough to start melting the foot of snow that has brought much of the metropolitan area to a standstill.

Meteorologist David Elson says there will be some melting before Christmas, but the "real meltdown" will arrive soon after.