[Grovenet] On the national news . . . .

[Ron D'Eau Claire]

Yep. We dodged the bullet here in the Newport area. 
 
Forest Grove was much closer than us to the core wet stream coming ashore.
Here near Newport we were on the southern edge, getting only a few inches of
rain mixed with some spectacular hail at times. The Newport airport nearby
reported 2 or 3 inches total for the storm. So we didn't see flooding either
in spite of 40 foot seas intercepting the creeks and rivers reaching the
sea. I understand Seaside had waves in the downtown streets!

We did get Hurricane-force winds that took our neighbors woodshed roof and
knocked down trees. Gusts were over 100 mph. I've got a pair of 40-foot
trees broken off and leaning at a 45 degree angle into other trees and two
more broken off and hanging awkwardly over the creek. They were clearly old
veterans of many such storms who aren't flexible enough any longer. Looks
like I need to find a "cherry picker" for those leaners. I'm not about to
get under a few tons of wood and cut it loose <G>. Oh, well, I'm well  fixed
with the raw material for next year's firewood, and maybe for the year after
that... Lots of buckin' and splittin' in my future next spring.

Our really big spruce and firs - 80 feet or so tall - faired beautifully as
if they were merely getting their branches tickled by the wind, and the
young firs simply bent over at almost right angles with each gust about 2/3
the way to the top and then bounced right back when  the wind abated for a
moment. 

But all of that's peanuts compared to what the folks farther North have had
to deal with. 

One thing I did find interesting was that the humming birds were out in the
wind! They came to the feeder as long as it wasn't bouncing too badly. It's
on the lee side of the house. Amazing how they can move so quickly in such
chaotic winds! Then there are the seagulls who soar and flap no matter how
hard the wind is blowing and who look absolutely comical flying into the
wind at full speed as they move backwards pas us on the ground!

Ron D'Eau Claire 

 \\
 
 -----Original Message-----
From: grovenet-bounces at rdrop.com [mailto:grovenet-bounces at rdrop.com] On
Behalf Of Bob Browning
Sent: Tuesday, December 04, 2007 11:54 AM
To: Grovenet
Subject: [Grovenet] On the national news . . . .




Guard evacuates flooded Oregon town 


By JOSEPH B. FRAZIER, Associated Press Writer 13 minutes ago 

PORTLAND, Ore. - National Guard troops evacuated residents in a flooded town
Tuesday and tens of thousands of residents remained without power after
back-to-back storms pounded the Pacific Northwest, killing five people.

Troops with the Oregon Air National Guard used inflatable rafts to evacuate
flooded residents in Vernonia, a mountain timber town on the Nehalem River,
about 35 miles northwest of Portland.

"They're moving down the streets, and through the backyards," said Maj. Mike
Braibish, spokesman for the National Guard.

Vernonia, which has about 2,200 residents, had been largely cut off by
landslides that blocked roads into the community, but Guard trucks with high
clearance were able to get in late Monday and more were being sent, Braibish
said.

Still, communications were difficult. "There are no phone lines or land
lines available in Vernonia," said Hyla Ridenour, spokeswoman for Columbia
River Fire and Rescue in nearby St. Helens.

The storm that hit Monday smacked the region with hurricane-force winds and
several inches of rain, and was blamed for five deaths in Oregon and
Washington state. It came only a day after another severe system moved
through Sunday.

By Tuesday, the second system had moved on to the Upper Plains and Midwest,
where it was predicted to bring snow. In North Dakota, the National Weather
Service said parts of the state could get up to 9 inches.

Towns on the coast were hit hardest by the storms. Red Cross shelters in
western Oregon were housing 556 people as of midnight Monday, said
spokeswoman Lise Harwin.

The governors of Washington and Oregon declared states of emergency, which
could speed relief efforts in flood-hit areas. The weather service said 3 to
6 inches of rain had fallen across much of western Washington. The 24-hour
rain total for Bremerton, Wash., was 10.78 inches.

In Washington, some 130 people had to be rescued from flooded areas by Coast
Guard helicopters. Mudslides and floods blocked roads, and Interstate 5, the
principal north-south route along the West Coast, was closed near Centralia
because of about 10 feet of water over the road. Many schools and government
offices were closed for a second day.

Mudslides also halted Amtrak passenger train service between Portland and
Vancouver, British Columbia.

Nearly 75,000 customers lost power in Washington, and more than 50,000 were
still without power Tuesday morning, emergency management officials said. In
Oregon, Portland-based Pacific Power said about 36,000 customers were still
without power.

In Oregon, a 90-year-old woman died after suffering what Tillamook County
medical examiner Dr. Paul Betlinski called "a weather-related heart attack"
as she evacuated. In the same area, a truck was swept away by floodwaters,
and the driver was reported dead.

In Washington, a man in Aberdeen died when a tree fell on him as he was
trying to clear another downed tree. Another man died in Montesano when the
cutoff of electricity left him without the oxygen equipment he needed,
officials said.

A man in Mason County died Monday night when he was buried in a building hit
by a mudslide, Kyle Herman, spokesman for the Washington State Emergency
Management Division, said Tuesday.

Mudslides blocked numerous roads and forced an undetermined number of
residents to evacuate condominiums, apartments and houses in Seattle, at
least nine houses in suburban Burien and several mobile homes in Shelton.

In Olympia, the rain Monday turned a normally small creek into a roiling,
muddy surge of water that tore through a wall at the Ranch House BBQ
restaurant. Tables and booths were strewn across the street.

Christy Romo, who lives just up the hill, said she could hear the
floodwaters coming and started packing before the first floor of her cabin
was inundated. 

"I knew I wouldn't have much time," Romo said. "I heard a bang, and then saw
the water rising quickly." 

Power companies said electricity may not be restored to some areas for three
or four days. More stiff winds were likely, but nothing like the blasts that
exceeded 120 mph at the height of the storm. 

The back-to-back storm fronts Sunday and Monday were among the Northwest's
worst in recent memory. The first storm marched across the country, killing
at least 15 people, mostly in traffic accidents, and dumping snow from the
Midwest to the Northeast. 

Lake-effect snow storms delivered a first blast of winter overnight Tuesday
to a large part of upstate New York, dumping up to a foot of snow on some
areas and forcing schools to close. 

"There's people who will be cursing this stuff as they drive to work today.
Not me," said Chip Sutton, a 45-year-old mechanic who was plowing parking
lots and driveways in Syracuse. "I'm tired, but I'm happy, and a few dollars
richer." 

Wintry weather also spelled success for ski areas in New England that
suffered through an abysmal winter last year. In Vermont, 7 inches of snow
welcomed skiers and snowboarders Monday. 

"It's not snow. It's white gold," said Christopher Francis, innkeeper at Ye
Olde England Inne, a 30-room establishment in the shadow of Vermont's Stowe
Mountain Resort. 

___ 

Associated Press writers Rachel La Corte in Olympia, Wash., and William
Kates in Syracuse, N.Y., contributed to this report.

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