The National Weather Service has issued an ice storm warning for Western Washington now extended to at least 2pm today. the storm shut down all runways at SeaTac this morning and workers managed to get one runway open for both arrivals and departures. Governor Christine Gregoire has issued a special weather proclamation (see below) to "ensure the delivery of dairy products" and allows the activation of the Washington State National Guard should they be needed.

URGENT - WINTER WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE SEATTLE WA

...VERY ICY CONDITIONS THIS MORNING OVER SOUTH PARTS OF WESTERN WASHINGTON...

.A WARM FRONT WILL SPREAD RAIN OVER THE TOP OF COLD AIR TRAPPED AT THE SURFACE...RESULTING IN FREEZING RAIN...MODERATE AT TIMES THIS MORNING. THE RAIN IS EXPECTED TO EASE LATE THIS MORNING AND TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED TO CREEP ABOVE FREEZING BY ABOUT MIDDAY.

...ICE STORM WARNING IN EFFECT UNTIL 2pm PST TODAY...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN SEATTLE HAS ISSUED AN ICE STORM WARNING...WHICH IS IN EFFECT UNTIL NOON PST TODAY. THE WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IS NO LONGER IN EFFECT.

* SOME AFFECTED LOCATIONS...HOQUIAM...OLYMPIA...SEATTLE.

* TIMING...DURING THE MORNING HOURS.

* ICE ACCUMULATIONS...ICE ACCUMULATIONS TWO TO FOUR TENTHS OF AN INCH THIS MORNING.

* MAIN IMPACT...TRAVEL WILL BE SEVERELY IMPACTED. POWER OUTAGES ARE LIKELY.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

AN ICE STORM WARNING MEANS SEVERE WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE IMMINENT OR OCCURRING. SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS OF ICE ACCUMULATIONS WILL MAKE TRAVEL DANGEROUS OR IMPOSSIBLE. TRAVEL IS STRONGLY DISCOURAGED. COMMERCE WILL LIKELY BE SEVERELY IMPACTED. IF YOU MUST TRAVEL...KEEP AN EXTRA FLASHLIGHT...FOOD...AND WATER IN YOUR VEHICLE IN CASE OF AN EMERGENCY. ICE ACCUMULATIONS WILL LIKELY LEAD TO SNAPPED POWER LINES AND FALLING TREE BRANCHES THAT ADD TO
THE DANGER.

Special Weather Proclamation

The proclamation:
• Waives hours of service for drivers of trucks hauling intrastate bulk milk shipments from farms to dairy processing facilities and from dairies to processing facilities. The waiver is in effect through Jan. 22;
• Directs state government to support emergency response activities in local jurisdictions affected by the winter storm;
• Allows state agencies to make expenditures and utilize resources to assist local communities in their recovery efforts; and
• Authorizes the Washington National Guard to activate at the direction of State Adjutant General Maj. Gen. Timothy J. Lowenberg.

The proclamation adds that state actions are to be coordinated through the State Emergency Operations Center (EOC) at Camp Murray.