Plane slides off taxiway in Spokane; weather causing problems statewide

A Southwest Airlines plane with 118 passengers on board skidded off a snow-covered taxiway this afternoon after safely landing at Spokane International Airport, the airline said.

No one was injured.

The pilot of Southwest Flight 485, bound from Portland was slowly taxiing to the gate when the front wheels of the plane slid off the taxiway around 1:40 p.m., said Brandy King, a spokeswoman for the Dallas-based carrier.

Heavy snow had been falling on Spokane and the surrounding region since Saturday.

The airport had to shut down operations until crews could move the Boeing 737, which was obstructing a taxiway, King said.

Southwest used three buses to shuttle the plane's passengers and five crew members to the terminal.

The plane will be removed from service for routine inspection to make sure it wasn't damaged and that mechanical failure did not play a role in the incident, King said.

The weather is already causing havoc elsewhere in Washington.

Icy roads resulted in multiple noninjury car accidents in Yelm and along U.S. Highway 12 in the Morton and Mossyrock areas of south Lewis County, according to Thurston and Lewis County dispatchers. About five car crashes were reported in Yelm and three in south Lewis County, dispatchers said.

More snow in the forecast could mean more slick South Sound roads in the coming days.

In Southeastern Washington, a fuel truck with an empty tank and a bus chartered for a Special Olympics event crashed and overturned on an icy highway in southeastern Washington on Saturday, injuring several people.

Six people were transported to a hospital with minor injuries, said Washington State Patrol Trooper Mike Jensen.

The fuel truck was driving west on State Route 124 north of Walla Walla when it lost traction and slid off the road, and the Special Olympics bus — with 32 people on board after a day of skiing at Bluewood — followed suit, rolling onto its side. Two other cars also skidded off the road.

The injuries consisted mostly of bruises, scrapes and sore backs, Jensen said.

The roads were so slick that emergency workers initially had trouble reaching the scene. Some walked from about a half-mile away, Jensen said, and four-wheel drive vehicles eventually drove through a field to get closer to the crash site.

"We could drive better in the fields than we could on the road," Jensen said.

Freezing rain also forced the State Patrol and Department of Transportation to close Interstate 82 from Kennewick to the Oregon border. DOT spokesman Mike Westbay said he did not know when it might reopen.

In Spokane, snow has blanketed the city. Before the Southwest flight's problem, the snow had already been disrupting arrivals into the airport and, elsewhere it sent motorists slipping out of control.

"We could get another 2 to 4 inches, for 5 to 10 total," said Bob Tobin, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Spokane.

The heavy snowfall was the result of two storms, one from the northwest and the other moving up from the south, converging over the Inland Northwest at the same time Saturday afternoon, Tobin said. Both hovered over the Spokane area for hours.

And more is on the way.

"We have a series of snowstorms coming through," Tobin said, adding that the region should see lingering effects of the weekend storm on Monday, with new storms moving through Tuesday, Thursday and over next weekend.

Saturday's storm left police, paramedics and others scrambling as motorists slipped out of control on roads and highways across Spokane and Kootenai counties.

Interstate 90 was partially blocked Saturday in several locations between Spokane and Liberty Lake because of numerous auto accidents, according to the Washington State Patrol.

WSP received reports of 84 collisions in Spokane County starting at noon Saturday. Most were slide-offs with no serious injuries, troopers reported. The Spokane Police Department said there were 26 collisions with varying degrees of injury.

Spokane Fire dispatch had a steady afternoon, responding to 25 car accidents with no major injuries.

The storm proved a setback for comedy fans.

"Tonight Show" host Jay Leno canceled his Saturday night show at Northern Quest Casino after the pilots of his chartered jet grew concerned about the Spokane area's worsening weather.

"He feels awful about it," Frank Kepler, a box office representative at the casino, said of Leno's decision.

Kepler said Leno was supposed to fly to Spokane International Airport in a private jet from Burbank, Calif.

The flight crew considered trying to get into an airfield in Idaho but feared conditions would be just as bad there, Kepler said.

The show will be rescheduled.