Deep Freeze Continues As Flurries Possible In North Sound

A December freeze is keeping its lock on Western Washington as bitter cold weather broke records Wednesday and could do the same Thursday. Some snow flurries might also fall in the North Sound.

The cold weather also closed two schools and left ice on some roadways Wednesday.

The low temperature at Sea-Tac Airport, at 18 degrees early Wednesday morning, broke a record for the date. The previous record of 21 degrees was set on Dec. 9, 1972.

KIRO 7 meteorologist Rick Van Cise said on Thursday morning, “We’ll be back in potential record low territory,” as temperatures will be around 21 degrees – which is also the record low at Sea-Tac.

Van Cise said temperatures will gradually start to warm up even overnight into Thursday as there will be no single digit temperatures like there have been the past couple of nights.

There might also be some snow flurries in the North Sound from a little disturbance coming down from the north and hitting the very cold air, Van Cise said.

In Olympia on Wednesday, a low of 6 degrees broke a record low temperature of 10, also set in 1972.

The cold is suspected of causing a power outage that closed a Bothell school for the day.

Woodside Elementary School was closed Tuesday and several hundred customers were without power after an underground line failed, officials said. They said the cold may have stressed older electrical equipment.

WF West High School in Chehalis was also closed Tuesday because of frozen pipes.

The chilly temperatures left ice on some roadways, including Harbor Avenue in West Seattle, where a city crew was using a backhoe to break up and remove over an inch of ice.

Ice also covered part of the Thea Foss Waterway, but it may be mostly saltwater. Saltwater doesn't freeze until the temperature reaches six degrees below zero, so it may be fresh water from the nearby Puyallup River that often rises above the heavier saltwater.

The ice did not appear to create any danger for marine traffic.

It dropped into the single digits in Olympia overnight, sending some people to the Salvation Army, looking for shelter.

"I have a van just up the road, but … those turn into ice boxes in the cold," said a man identified only as Raymond. "It's just a complete ice box."

Forecasters said slightly warmer air moving into the Northwest Thursday will bring a chance of snow by the weekend.