Snow tapering off in Washington

The hit-or-miss snow showers that blanketed some Seattle-area neighborhoods while barely dusting others early today have already tapered off, improving driving conditions as the snow melts away.

With daytime temperatures expected to rise into the low 40s today, all the snow should be gone by noon, said Andy Haner, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Seattle.

Between midnight and 7:30 a.m., there were at least 50 accidents on King County freeways and highways but no one was injured in a series of fender benders and spin outs that landed drivers in ditches, said Trooper Christina Martin.

By 8 a.m., she said the State Patrol's emergency dispatch center in Bellevue had become eerily quiet, with only one blocking accident — a jackknifed semi-truck on eastbound Highway 520 at Lake Washington Boulevard in Seattle.

"Other than the normal traffic backups, the Seattle area is kind of cleared up — we have no more reports of crashes and spinouts," said Martin, noting that on a typical day, troopers respond to an average of 10 crashes in King County.

In Seattle, road crews used all of the city's available plows and sanders to clear major arterials, Seattle transportation department spokeswoman Marybeth Turner said in a news release. Workers applied salt to the West Seattle Bridge and the Alaskan Way Viaduct, she wrote.

The start of school was delayed two hours in the Seattle School District and buses were running on snow routes. Initially, Bellevue schools were to start two hours late as well but at 6:45 a.m., school district officials canceled classes for the day, according to the district's Web site.

A fast-moving system passed over the Seattle area between 4 and 5 a.m., quickly dumping up to 2 inches of snow in the city and up to 3 inches on the Eastside, Haner said.

Tonight should be dry and Friday is expected to be dry and partly sunny with a high of 47 before rain clouds move in Friday night, he said. Although it'll be wet and stormy from Saturday night through Wednesday, temperatures will be mild, even climbing into the 50s.

This morning's random blast of winter weather was caused by an upper level low pressure system, Haner explained. While the infamous Puget Sound convergence zone usually forms over southern Snohomish County, this time it centered over north King County, he said. Though South King County received trace snow, light snow was still falling at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport this morning, he said.

Skiers and snowboarders — who've had a disappointing season this year after two winters of exceptional snowfall in the mountains — should head for the hills today or tomorrow to take advantage of powdery conditions before they disappear this weekend, Haner said.

Up to 4 inches of new fresh snow fell on Snoqualmie Pass, with Stevens Pass getting another 6 inches and counting, Haner said. While over the last two years, the mountains have received 150 to 200 percent of normal snowfall, most ski areas have only received an average of 75 percent of normal snowfall this season.

"Every little bit helps. It's cold snow so it will add a nice layer of powder on top," he said.

Sara Jean Green: 206-515-5654 or sgreen@seattletimes.com