West Seattle, Washington
01 Sunday
Back on February 2nd, we showed you the museum ship USS Turner Joy, photographed by Gary Jones as it was towed past West Seattle, on the way from Bremerton to Lake Union for maintenance. Just heard KING 5 mention it’s heading back through the Ballard Locks and cross-sound to Bremerton tomorrow (Tuesday) morning, and found this confirmation:
USS Turner Joy getting underway tomorrow morning at Lake Union at 7, Locks 730 to 8, Home in Bremerton around 1030 to 11. #WeLoveBremerton pic.twitter.com/47fkykiv50
— USS Turner Joy (@USSTurnerJoy) February 28, 2017
So if you notice a Navy destroyer passing at mid-morning, this is the one.
As shown in that photo texted to us from the Sealth/Denny campus after school let out, the snow this afternoon had its fun side, too. Tonight we are showing a few more photos from this afternoon, along with a weather update: The National Weather Service has extended its Winter Weather Advisory alert until 4 am, saying there’s a chance of more snow showers like the ones we saw this morning and afternoon.
Thanks to Ann Anderson for that photo from Admiral. Here’s how it looked on approach from Burien’s Seahurst Park, photographed by Amanda Kay:
We will of course be watching overnight for the possible snow encore, and in the early morning for any possible school (etc.) changes. We also appreciate your updates – texting or calling 206-293-6302 is always the fastest way to get us.
(SCROLL DOWN for latest – as of 6:15 pm, most of the closed freeway stretches have reopened)
(WSDOT traffic cam closest to the truck wreck – refresh page for newest view)
2:38 PM: I-5 is still shut down both ways north of the West Seattle Bridge, four hours after a tanker truck went sideways on the southbound side near I-90 (see our earlier coverage here). This is affecting vehicle traffic just about everywhere. But the process of offloading the wrecked tanker’s cargo to another truck is getting going, so we’re launching this afternoon report and will keep you updated here.
2:50 PM: As tweeted by SDOT, here’s the current closure list:
Meantime…
Loud snow. Covering the street fast. pic.twitter.com/thTOozDRIS
— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) February 27, 2017
3:43 PM: Complicating things, the snow’s back, after thunder/lightning. There’s an alert for wintry showers until mid-evening. And it’s covering the street FAST.
Definitely heavier than the snow showers we covered just at morning light, 9+ hours ago.
4:18 PM: The snow’s finally easing, here and elsewhere in the city. Meantime, the tanker-truck offloading continues. We’re adding traffic cameras here by request shortly, to help (if that’s even possible) with the pm attempts to get home. But first:
That’s a 4:15 pm look at the Water Taxi line at Pier 50 – thanks to Christian Buhagiar for the photo. Here’s the WT schedule.
4:39 PM: State Patrol says what’s now described as propane (earlier, they said butane) is still being offloaded. And that’s just the prelude to pulling up the truck, and likely some cleanup and other followups after that, so don’t expect I-5 to reopen any time soon.
5:06 PM: To check the cameras on potential alternate routes, see our traffic-info page. Meantime, commenters say the 4:45 pm Water Taxi to West Seattle left at capacity and there’s a big line for 5:15 pm. We’re getting bus-delay reports too. No easy way to get back home today.
5:33 PM: Water taxi’s 5:15 pm run is reported to have been at capacity too:
@westseattleblog the line waiting for the 5:15 run now goes all the way back under the viaduct pic.twitter.com/K4VUJXK9R3
— Steve Voght (@voght) February 28, 2017
5:43 PM: And as for the wreck itself:
Two Class – C tow trucks working alongside Seattle FD to slowly lift the tanker onto it's wheels. We are getting closer to opening I-5 pic.twitter.com/ep9cJERafA
— Trooper Rick Johnson (@wspd2pio) February 28, 2017
5:59 PM: Thanks to ACG for pointing out that South Seattle College (WSB sponsor) has announced both its campuses are closed tonight because of the weather.
6:12 PM: The reopenings have begun …
Rejoice! EB I-90 at the stadiums is back open! Take it slow & use caution. A lot of collisions happen after closures pic.twitter.com/2rlaISsQs4
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) February 28, 2017
And a moment later, WSP tweeted that southbound AND northbound I-5 are reopening – only the collector-distributor lanes (where the crash happened) will remain closed for now.
8:30 PM: Everything is open again, including the collector-distributor lanes.
West Seattle’s first tower crane of the year starts off this roundup of development notes:
UPTON FLATS CRANE GOING UP: Despite the ubiquity of tower cranes in some other parts of the city, West Seattle has been without one since the second removal at The Whittaker (WSB sponsor) almost five months ago. But that’s changing today with the first tower-crane arrival of 2017, at Upton Flats (6058 35th SW in High Point), first mentioned in our morning traffic coverage.
UF is a two-building, 4-story, mixed-use project with 100+ apartments and ground-floor retail over 100+ underground parking spaces; here’s our report from its final Southwest Design Review Board meeting last April.
And from today’s edition of the city’s twice-weekly Land Use Information Bulletin, three rowhouse projects:
3914 SW BRANDON: A three-story, six-unit rowhouse with six offstreet-parking spaces is proposed for this corner lot across from Fairmount Park, to replace a 64-year-old house. Today’s notice opens a comment period until March 13th; here’s how to comment.
5015 FAUNTLEROY WAY & 5017 FAUNTLEROY WAY: Both are also in today’s LUIB and are being considered together, the city says, for “shared access”: Here’s the notice for 5015 Fauntleroy, a 3-story, 4-unit rowhouse with 4 offstreet-parking spaces; here’s how to comment (deadline March 13th). Here’s the notice for 5017 Fauntleroy, three 3-story houses with two offstreet-parking spaces. County records say the site currently holds a 68-year-old house. Here’s how to comment (also by March 13th).
3850 21ST SW: This notice is for the decision approving a land-use permit for a two-unit rowhouse with two offstreet-parking spaces. It opens an appeal period until March 13th; here’s how to appeal.
(WSF dock cam – refresh page for newest view)
12:16 PM: As if regional transportation could not get more snarled – the Fauntleroy ferry dock is out of service until further notice “due to (a) mechanical issue with (the) transfer span connecting boat to land,” per Washington State Ferries, which adds:
Terminal maintenance crews are assessing the situation, and initial estimated time of repair is a minimum of two hours. Updates will be provided as more information becomes available. Service between Southworth and Vashon will continue. For travel to and from Vashon, the Point Defiance/Tahlequah and Southworth/Vashon routes are advised as alternatives at this time.
We’re headed down the hill to the dock for a closer look.
12:42 PM: Just confirmed at the dock what WSF has announced – the repairs are done and the dock is open again.
(WSDOT traffic cam closest to the truck wreck – refresh page for newest view)
10:50 AM: We’ve been covering this in morning-traffic watch, but it’s a bigger problem now and so we’re breaking it out here: I-5 is CLOSED in both directions north of the West Seattle Bridge because of a tanker-truck crash in the collector-distributor lanes near I-90. The truck went on its side, trapping its driver for a while; he is out now and does not have major injuries, but the truck is reported to have some kind of a leak, and that’s why the shutdown is happening. So avoid I-5 TFN, whether you’re headed southbound or northbound. This is backing up the eastbound Spokane Street Viaduct, too.
(SDOT traffic cam looking east over east end of WS Bridge – refresh page for newest view)
Updates to come.
11:06 AM: This is also affecting I-90, both the eastbound access and westbound exiting in the stadium zones, so if you’re headed here from the eastside, be aware of that too. WSDOT says the tanker truck is full of butane.
11:25 AM: The photo above is from the Washington State Patrol. Per scanner, whether there’s a leak or not is now in question, but they do need to offload the cargo before the truck can be righted, and SFD says that could take a few hours. Also note, apparently I-5 northbound traffic from south of here is being diverted onto the West Seattle Bridge, so you could see some confused people trying to figure out how to get to where they’re going.
11:41 AM: Handy summary from WSDOT:
CURRENT #SeattleTanker CLOSURES: pic.twitter.com/qgv9utwAIm
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) February 27, 2017
12:17 PM: No major change in this situation so far – both directions of I-5 are still closed. But there’s a new problem we’re covering separately – a mechanical problem on the dock has Washington State Ferries out of service to and from Fauntleroy TFN.
12:45 PM: Good news – the Fauntleroy terminal is back in service. Still no estimate on how much longer the I-5 closure will last.
12:53 PM: Add to the closures because of the tanker crash – “Northbound Airport Way S now closed at S Lander St. due to the incident on I-5,” per SDOT. The offloading truck, meantime, is reported to be on its way.
1:09 PM: New update from WSDOT:
Another update on WB I-90 @SnoqualmiePass & I-5 #SeattleTanker. Another tanker has arrived to unload butane from overturned truck. pic.twitter.com/C7ji58yGQg
— Washington State DOT (@wsdot) February 27, 2017
2:06 PM: Per scanner, they’re getting close to starting the offloading of the tanker that went onto its side. Once that happens, we’ll launch a separate afternoon update.
2:45 PM: And the transfer has begun; so has our afternoon report, here.
(Black turnstone in flight – photographed by Steve Director)
Happy Monday! From the WSB West Seattle Event Calendar, four highlights for the rest of today/tonight:
FREE TAX HELP: You’ll find it today at Delridge Library – just drop in between 2 pm and 7 pm. Details in our calendar listing. (5423 Delridge Way SW)
TRIANGLE IMPROVEMENT TASK FORCE: 4:30 pm at the Fauntleroy Church Fellowship Hall, it’s the third meeting of the citizens’ advisory group working on ideas to fix problems related to Washington State Ferries‘ Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth, aka Triangle, route. See the agenda here. All welcome. (9140 California SW)
SUSTAINABLE WEST SEATTLE’S ANNUAL MEETING: 7 pm at the Senior Center of West Seattle, you’re invited as Sustainable West Seattle sets its 2017 goals and elects new officers. All welcome. (4217 SW Oregon)
ALL-AGES QUIZ NIGHT: 7:30 pm at The Skylark – all ages are welcome for Monday Quiz Night. Prizes! (3803 Delridge Way SW)
LOOK AHEAD TO THE REST OF THE WEEK … on our complete-calendar page.
(SDOT MAP with travel times/video links; is the ‘low bridge’ closed? LOOK HERE)
(Click any view for a close-up; more cameras on the WSB Traffic page)
6:30 AM: Good morning! It’s been busy already. First, as reported here, 2,000+ homes/businesses from Puget Ridge to White Center lost power for at least an hour starting around 4:30. Right now, the last remaining pocket is in the Greenbridge area of WC, southwest of 8th/Roxbury. Weather also is a factor this morning – some of the higher areas have seen snow/sleet/mix showers, though nothing major is expected.
Reminders: Seattle Public Schools are back in session today after the weeklong mid-winter break … The Alaskan Way Viaduct has inspection closures next weekend (March 4-5).
Otherwise – no incidents reported currently, in or from West Seattle.
6:47 AM: We went out to make sure the 8th/Roxbury light is working (it IS) and encountered a serious snow shower.
In Greenbridge, some’s on the road and sidewalks. Be extra-careful!
7:11 AM: We’ve just been through Arbor Heights and Sunrise Heights. Bit of snow on the ground in spots but roads are just damp.
7:19 AM Some traffic disruption on 35th at Graham – tower crane is arriving at Upton Flats. More on that later.
7:33 AM Now in South Admiral. Slush on sidewalks, some on streets.
8 AM: Alki sea level – nothing. But as commenters point out, suburbs have been hit too. So allow yourself extra time if you have yet to head out.
8:30 AM: Another shower is moving through – slushy rain back at HQ, where we’re about 300 feet up, east of Lincoln Park. No snow on the ground here. The National Weather Service promises this won’t be an all-day thing:
For #Seattle – a few more snow showers this AM. Temps warming: 34-37 degrees. Limits accumulations, allows for melting. #wasnow
— NWS Seattle (@NWSSeattle) February 27, 2017
10:23 AM: If you are headed back this way from downtown or points north, avoid SB I-5. There’s a rescue response right now involving a tanker truck that’s reported to be on its side in the I-5/I-90 area. The driver, a 60-year-old man, is reported to be OK, but trapped in the truck, so they’re working to get him out.
10:44 AM: Authorities were seeking to close I-5 both ways because of this, after detecting a leak, but we have not seen formal confirmation of that yet from WSDOT. Nonetheless, we’d advise avoiding I-5 through downtown, either way, TFN. The driver, meantime, is reported to have been rescued from the truck.
Heads up #Seattle drivers. Rollover collision is blocking all lanes of the SB I-5 c/d just south of I-90. SB I-5 mainline is still open. pic.twitter.com/x8npxBJhbf
— WSDOT Traffic (@wsdot_traffic) February 27, 2017
11:48 AM: We’re covering the aforementioned situation separately here. Meantime, a crash is causing some trouble at Admiral/Spokane beneath the bridge:
Meanwhile, some trouble at the bottom of south/eastbound Admiral Way hill. No major injuries. Tow trucks en route. pic.twitter.com/zaZt4V5SBl
— West Seattle Blog (@westseattleblog) February 27, 2017
4:37 AM: Thanks for the texts – power is out for what Seattle City Light‘s outage map says are 2,000+ homes/businesses from Highland Park southward. More to come.
4:49 AM: Also parts of Puget Ridge, Riverview, South Park, White Center – we’ve added a screengrab from the outage map. No word yet on the cause. The SCL map has a restoration-time estimate of 11 am but as we always remind you during power outages, that is just a guess, could be much earlier, could be much later. And please remember if you are driving before the power’s back on – any signalized intersection where the signal’s out or flashing means it’s an all-ways stop.
5:34 AM: Getting texts (thank you!) saying power’s back on. Waiting to see via the map if it’s back for everyone.
5:38 AM: Map has updated. Down to 500+ customers, in White Center (mostly Greenbridge vicinity):
6:07 AM: And it’s halved to 240 customers, north Greenbridge. “Equipment failure” is now listed as the cause.
8:44 AM: SCL says the equipment that failed is a switch, and it’s being replaced. They hope to have everybody back up and running by 1 pm.
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