By Pepper Fisher
HOOD CANAL – Almost 50 miles of Highway 101 from the State Route 104 junction all the way to Hoodsport along Hood Canal is still closed due to Sunday’s heavy, wet snow that caused multiple trees to fall over the roadway, taking out power lines with them.
DOT spokesman Doug Adamson says the WSDOT and PUD crews have been working since late Sunday and still have a long way to go.
“It is been a Herculean effort for a lot of the crews along US 101. Just a lot of wet, heavy, sloppy snow came down in a short amount of time. So, working in tandem with the local utility crews in the area, who been out there 24/7 to take down the power lines, raise them, remove them, remove trees, along with our crews who are removing trees and plowing after the roadways are cleared, it is a big, big task.”
Besides removing trees from the roadway, crews are also dropping dangerous trees while others work to replace damaged power poles. Adamson says the sense of urgency is not lost on crews and they’re working as fast as they safely can.
“We understand how important the roadway is because, pretty much, we’re landlocked along the west side of the canal. Leaving 104, really, the only option to get back and forth, unless you’re heading down to Shelton and Mason County. We understand that for the people who live there, yeah, it’s a major, major inconvenience. But really, we have to close such a large area because that essentially is a giant work zone.”
Adamson says there is still no ETA on when they’ll be able to open that nearly 50 miles of Highway 101 from Quilcene to Hoodsport.
(Mason County PUD photo of tree over power lines.)