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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 11, 2015)
7A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2015 Wild Northwest weather eases drought worries North Coast is mostly in ‘cleanup mode’ Associated Press and The Daily Astorian Fierce Northwest storms that sent rivers bursting from their banks, closed roadways and produced a rare tornado have had one positive effect — easing summer drought con- cerns that prompted cities to ac- tive water shortage plans. The storms that killed at least two people in Oregon this week were easing a bit, but forecasters said mudslide dan- ger on the saturated hills would remain high through the week- end. A rain-soaked hillside col- lapsed Wednesday north of Portland, on the main highway connecting Washington and Oregon, stranding thousands of motorists on Interstate 5. Road closures in both states frustrat- ed drivers who were trying to navigate alternate routes taking them hours out of their way. Two lanes were back open by Thursday night and of¿- cials said they hoped to have all three reopened by late Sunday. North Coast The North Coast was under Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian A car drives by high water along Highway 202 near the Youngs River Thursday evening. High water shut down parts of the highway for several hours. Neighbors are bracing for more high water tomorrow. a Àood warning until today, then under a Àood advisory from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday, according to the National Weather Service. As of 8 a.m. today, there had been 3. inch- es of rain in Astoria since Tues- day. Oregon Gov. Kate Brown on Thursday declared a state of emergency in Clatsop, Tilla- mook and 11 other counties be- cause of a severe winter storm, including high winds, Àooding and landslides. “The emergency declara- tion ensures state resources, emergency response personnel, and equipment can be activat- ed to respond to communities in need if their local resources are exhausted,” Brown said. Washington Gov. Jay Inslee de- clared a statewide emergency Wednesday. Because of the heavy rains and Àooding, Jewell School and Neah-Kah-Nie School Dis- trict remained closed today. Access to Jewell is restrict- ed because of intermittent Àooding on Oregon +ighway southeast of Astoria at high tide, along with landslides that have closed +wy. be- tween Jewell and Birkenfeld and Oregon +ighway 13 north of the junction with U.S. +ighway . Clatsop County Public Works Director Michael Sum- mers said travelers will see high water on other county roads during high tides over the weekend. The high water will im- pact parts of Perkins Road and Dolphin Road in Warrenton and Lounsberry Lane south of Warrenton. McCormick Gardens Road in Gearhart and Tweedle Road off +ighway 13 will also be affected. “We are working to keep the signs up to date on the high water,” Summers said. “Then, we will move into more of a cleanup mode, moving all of the debris off the road.” The Oregon Department of Transportation has also es- tablished a snow zone on OR between Copperage and Swede roads, asking motorists to carry chains or traction tires regardless of conditions. An- other snow zone has been es- tablished on Oregon +ighway south of Clatskanie. As of this morning, U.S. east of the junction with Ore- gon +ighway 53 was still re- stricted to two lanes because of reported erosion. There were also brief delays on U.S. +igh- way 3 near Rainier because of erosion. U.S. +ighway 11 at Wheeler will remain closed through the weekend. The roadway sunk too much to allow vehicle traf¿c, the trans- portation department said. The road has been closed since Tuesday, when extreme- ly heavy rainfall caused nu- merous slides and Àooding throughout the area. While the road will eventu- ally need to be rebuilt as part of a larger emergency project, the transportation department is hoping to construct a tempo- rary repair that would allow at least one lane of traf¿c to open by early next week. Since many county roads were also damaged by the re- cent storms, there is no easy detour for travelers to go from Wheeler to Tillamook. The al- ternative route is to take OR 53 from Wheeler to U.S. , east on U.S. to OR and then west on OR . In Raymond, Wash., Àood- ing from the Willapa River blocked parts of U.S +ighway 11 Thursday afternoon, cut- ting off the major north-south route through in Raymond, according to Paci¿c County Emergency Management. More storms are coming, but nothing as strong as ear- lier this week. Steady rain of the usual winter variety is ex- pected in Oregon and Wash- ington over the next few days. The major storms have shifted south into California. Stranded: ‘It was terrifying. I had to crawl out the window ...’ Continued from Page 1A “When we hit it, the car immedi- ately died, we started Àoating to the left,” Steadman said. The Taurus was dragged by water into the parking lot of the Dennis’ Dees Landscaping Garden Center and the vehicle began taking in water. “I called 911 and we said, ‘The water is ¿lling up the car so fast. My aunt is 1, she just had knee surgery,’” Steadman said. “They wanted to know where we were. They wanted us to call a tow truck. We were in danger for our lives. I felt hysterical by then.” Seaside Police Chief Dave +am said this morning the women called at about 8 p.m. and said they were going through high water. The callers said they wanted a tow from AAA. From the dispatcher’s per- spective, +am said, they ask callers to call AAA directly. The dispatcher said he could send a different tow truck, but it wouldn’t be AAA. +e told the women to call back if they needed other resources. “The dispatcher basically said, ‘Yeah, call AAA directly,’’ +am said. “Then they the fam- ily) said ‘OK.’” Even as water was ¿lling the car, Keno tried to call a tow truck, which did not respond. Freezing water was up to their waists. “It was terrifying, I had to crawl out the window and get out the roof,” Steadman said. The car was still moving and tipping, she said. “I literally had to try and open the door, then the water rushed in. We’re talking freez- ing water,’ Steadman said. “It was already ¿lled up to our seats.” Finally able to get out of the passenger side, Steadman got in feet of rushing water to try to free her aunt. While freeing Keno, Stead- man banged her knee against debris Àoating in the Àood wa- ters. They pressed themselves against the closed building to try to stay dry. Meanwhile, Steadman said, police, sheriff and Ore- gon Department of Transpor- tation vehicles were passing nearby through the water. No one heard their screams, she said, and no one made any contact. “I knew we had to get to high ground,” Steadman said. “The water was splashing us on us, the waves were up to the building on the ramp. My aunt couldn’t climb up the walls, I couldn’t pick her up. They continued to try to sig- nal to of¿cials, who continued to drive by. “Two huge ODOT trucks went by, then an ambulance,” Steadman said. “Nobody is en- gaging. It was two hours. Our ¿ngers weren’t moving. We were lit up because of the light from the store.” Keno was hysterical at this point and trying to walk back to her car through the water, Steadman said. “We were hy- pothermic. They sat there and watched us.” Finally, Steadman said, an of¿cial — she is not certain what department — came over and offered them a ride to Sea- side. She said she was frustrated that, despite their condition, the of¿cial dropped them off not at the hospital, but at Safeway. “+e said to us, ‘I don’t have time for this, you’re going to have to get a ride.” “We had to call a cab to get back to Astoria,” Steadman said. The next day, Steadman and Keno were treated for hy- pothermia and post-traumatic stress. Steadman said she is having back spasms, along with the knee injury. HEN’S LODGING, INC. 503-791-3666 Presen t this co u p o n fo r $2 off O ffer exp ires 12/31/15 lim it o n e co u p o n p er visit a 6 4 o z. G ro w ler o f fresh cra ft b eer, cid er, ko m b ucha o r ro o t b eer 64 oz. container can be re-filled again and again ! Visit u s in the M in i M a rt! 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