Puget Sound communities, businesses prepare for possibility of winter weather this week
SEATTLE - Folks are already preparing for freezing temperatures and the possibility of snow on the horizon.
In February, with no in-person winter events for the year, you cannot fault folks for wishful thinking.
"I kind of thought we dodged the bullet," said Jerry Smith.
Smith is a manager at Stoneway Hardware in Seattle. He has worked the shop for about three decades and has seen all sorts of Seattle winters. Unfortunately, it appears we are not out of the woods yet with this winter.
"Seattle weather, you’re rolling the dice; you never know," he said.
Smith says in the last week, folks have been buying winter-weather products like shovels, scrapers, and deicers.
He says it is always smart to plan ahead, as opposed to scrambling to find products when the winter-weather has already hit.
"A major snow event is not the time to start getting what you need," said Smith.
County and city governments, as well as local school districts, are following in that thought and preparing in advance, for what the week may bring.
Snohomish County officials say 15 plow trucks are already active, and they have dozens more at the ready if needed.
The City of Tacoma plans to get a head start too.
City officials say all day Wednesday, trucks are working to apply deicers to all snow routes throughout the city.
If things do get bad, school districts are also thinking ahead.
Officials with Tacoma Public Schools say if snow prevents staff and students from getting to class, then lessons will shift to all remote learning.
Officials with Seattle Public Schools say they are working on a plan including independent study, which students could do in the event of power outages.
Both Tacoma Public Schools and Seattle Public Schools say they are working on meal distribution plans if weather does get bad.