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Winter weather
The FY 2016–17 winter was one that Oregonians
will talk about for years to come.
On Aug. 19, 2016, an Oregonian headline but the rain froze over the sanding material
proclaimed, “Farmer’s Almanac calls for wet winter almost as quickly as it was put down.
and it can’t come soon enough.” On April 27, 2017,
the headline was “Portland area has experienced “We had a lot more freezing rain last winter than
the most wet days ever this rainy season.” in years past,” said Ed Meeuwsen, Operations
Supervisor. “That was harder on the roads than
Of course, it wasn’t just rain. Snow, ice and single- anything else. We just couldn’t get the ice off the
digit temperatures played a large role in the roads. The ice would thaw and then freeze again.”
winter weather, causing slippery road conditions,
landslides and flooding. Crews from Washington January contributed significant snowfall to
County Department of Land Use & Transportation the equation. Washington County received 8–13
were on the job 24/7 for several consecutive inches of snow on Jan. 10–11, with the heaviest
weeks from December through early March. snowfall in the West Hills, according to the
National Weather Service.
“At one point, we ran two 12-hour shifts for two
full weeks,” recalled April Okazaki, Operations “That snow took a significant toll on both our
Supervisor. “We were constantly juggling personnel and our equipment,” Watkins said.
schedules, trying to make sure we had “It was all hands on deck. We had technicians and
coverage without overworking the crews.” inspectors out in the warehouse repairing chains
because everyone else was out on the road.”
“It wasn’t just one big weather event,” said Todd
Watkins, Operations and Maintenance Division Barnes Road was one of the worst, according to
manager. “The weather just kept coming. Snow, Danny Henry, Operations Supervisor. Cars were
ice, freezing rain and flooding — we had crews stuck in the snow on the concrete median and
and equipment out all the time.” abandoned in the roadway.
The storms kicked off Dec. 8, starting with snow “In some instances, it took days for a tow truck
in the morning, which changed to rain and freezing to finally get to the cars so we were able to get
rain, just in time for the evening commute. All of a plow up there,” he said. “Until the cars were out
the County’s plows and sanders were on the road, of the way, there was nothing we could do.”
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Building Community LUT Annual Report FY 2016–17 | 6
