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A landslide on the Maple Valley Highway in Renton brought down trees and dirt, blocking the highway Thursday morning.
A landslide on the Maple Valley Highway in Renton brought down trees and dirt, blocking the highway Thursday morning.
A landslide across Interstate 90 in Issaquah caused a miles-long backup Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017.
A landslide across Interstate 90 in Issaquah caused a miles-long backup Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017.
A landslide across I-90 in Issaquah caused a miles-long backup Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017.
A landslide across I-90 in Issaquah caused a miles-long backup Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017.
Department of Transportation crews work to clear debris that spilled across Interstate 90 in Issaquah, closing most lanes to traffic early Thursday morning, Feb. 16, 2017.
Department of Transportation crews work to clear debris that spilled across Interstate 90 in Issaquah, closing most lanes to traffic early Thursday morning, Feb. 16, 2017.
Crews were still working to get some roads open Thursday afternoon after landslides triggered closures on several major thoroughfares.
Maple Valley Highway’s westbound lanes in Renton were the latest closure Thursday morning but eastbound lanes reopened and one westbound lane was open by 4 p.m., according to a tweet from the city of Renton.
Interstate 90’s westbound lanes reopened a little after 3 p.m. after a landslide there caught drivers unaware and shut down the whole westbound side early Thursday. The Seattle Times reported that 13 cars were caught in the mud from that slide.
A landslide blocked all lanes of Interstate 90 east of Sunset Way in Issaquah except one, Thursday morning, February 16, 2017. WSDOT officials reported crews had opened one westbound lane around 7:20 a.m., while the others will remain closed for assessment.
In the city, West Seattle’s Highland Park Way Southwest also remained closed after a slide blocked that road Wednesday.
The state Department of Transportation tweeted just after 4 p.m. that another debris slide had blocked all northbound lanes of Interstate 5 near Woodland, about 45 minutes’ drive north of the Oregon border.
February has already brought more than seven inches of rainfall to the Seattle area, according to National Weather Service (NWS) data. February typically sees about 1.94 inches — over the whole month.
Forecasts called for more rain Thursday, but after heavy rains already this week, flood watches or warnings were in effect in Skagit, Snohomish and King counties. The Skokomish River in Mason County had already crested above flood stage.
Looking ahead, Friday is expected to bring drier conditions before a bit of rain Saturday and Sunday across the region, the NWS predicted. More serious wet conditions were expected to return to the area by the middle of next week.
Another landslide early Thursday blocked traffic in the 3400 block of East Pioneer Street in Puyallup.
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