Second I-90 slide closes pass again

Don't expect to cross Snoqualmie Pass today.

A second avalanche sent snow, trees, rocks and other debris tumbling onto Interstate 90 Wednesday afternoon, just hours since the roadway had reopened after Tuesday morning's snowslide.

It isn't clear how long the closure would last, but the state Department of Transportation (WSDOT) expected the pass would remain blocked well into today, at a minimum.

Because of the added debris, the WSDOT says cleanup will be more challenging than after Tuesday's slide, when it took 28 hours to clear the equivalent of 200,000 dump-truck loads of snow from two lanes.

The second slide, at about 2:45 p.m. Wednesday, trapped two cars near the west end of the Denny Creek Bridge, about a mile and a half west of the Snoqualmie Pass summit, said WSDOT spokesman Mike Westbay. No one was injured, and the cars weren't seriously damaged.

The highway was closed Wednesday night eastbound at Edgewick, milepost 34, and westbound near Ellensburg, milepost 106, according to the WSDOT.

Work crews struggled to clear the road.

An additional 12 to 16 inches of new snow was expected overnight, adding to the 3 feet that had fallen in the area since Monday. An additional 3 feet was expected by the end of Friday.

Transportation officials estimate an economic loss of $700,000 is caused every hour the pass is closed.

The initial slide, about 7 a.m. Tuesday, shut down travel until a lane opened in each direction about 11 a.m. Wednesday.

Early Tuesday, more than 200 trucks were lined up at North Bend, awaiting the opening of the pass. On typical weekdays, approximately 6,500 to 7,000 trucks travel I-90 over the pass.

"We really want to get the highways open and our economy moving," WSDOT secretary Paula Hammond said. "Mother Nature has hit us hard. Our crews are out there fighting, but the snow just keeps coming."

WSDOT officials said drivers in all mountain passes should be prepared for winter conditions, including compact snow and ice, and check www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/ for current highway conditions.

Seattle Times staff reporters Charles E. Brown, Jack Broom and Brian Alexander contributed to this report.