WSDOT Avalanche Control 2021 - Search Videos

Clearing SR 410 Chinook Pass after its winter closure is no easy task. It's a team effort between clearing the many, many feet of snow and triggering avalanches on the 100 or so avalanche paths on the route. Here's a look at the effort that went into reopening the highway this year. Oh, yeah, also. ...SR 410 Chinook and SR 123 Cayuse passes are now OPEN!!! | WSDOT

Clearing SR 410 Chinook Pass after its winter closure is no easy task. It's a team effort between clearing the many, many feet of snow and triggering avalanches on the 100 or so avalanche paths on the route. Here's a look at the effort that went into reopening the highway this year. Oh, yeah, also. ...SR 410 Chinook and SR 123 Cayuse passes are now OPEN!!! | WSDOT

12K viewsMay 28, 2021

A beautiful demonstration of avalanche control

A beautiful demonstration of avalanche control

New avalanche control system at Snoqualmie Pass

New avalanche control system at Snoqualmie Pass

MSNKREM-TV Spokane

Boom goes the dynamite! What did our avalanche control look like during Thursday's I-90 Snoqualmie Pass closure? Like this (hint: Explosions). | WSDOT

Boom goes the dynamite! What did our avalanche control look like during Thursday's I-90 Snoqualmie Pass closure? Like this (hint: Explosions). | WSDOT

648 viewsJan 22, 2016

No biggie, just dropping explosives from a helicopter to trigger an avalanche on I-90 Snoqualmie Pass (don't worry, we stopped westbound traffic today to get this done). | WSDOT

No biggie, just dropping explosives from a helicopter to trigger an avalanche on I-90 Snoqualmie Pass (don't worry, we stopped westbound traffic today to get this done). | WSDOT

96.7K viewsFeb 24, 2021

While the sun has been shining this week, up in our passes there’s still some signs of winter. The warmer weather loosened the snow pack on US 2 Stevens Pass Thursday so our avalanche crew did some control work in the afternoon. Quite a bit of snow came down and took awhile to clear. Nice job, team! | WSDOT

While the sun has been shining this week, up in our passes there’s still some signs of winter. The warmer weather loosened the snow pack on US 2 Stevens Pass Thursday so our avalanche crew did some control work in the afternoon. Quite a bit of snow came down and took awhile to clear. Nice job, team! | WSDOT

55.7K viewsApr 9, 2020

OK, this one doesn't involve explosives from a helicopter like our last post, but it does show the aftermath of a natural avalanche that happened Wednesday on the west side of US 2 Stevens Pass. It didn't threaten the roadway but it definitely took out a lot of trees. It also illustrates some of the potential danger for back country recreation, so please be sure to check the Northwest Avalanche Center site before heading out! https://nwac.us/ | WSDOT

OK, this one doesn't involve explosives from a helicopter like our last post, but it does show the aftermath of a natural avalanche that happened Wednesday on the west side of US 2 Stevens Pass. It didn't threaten the roadway but it definitely took out a lot of trees. It also illustrates some of the potential danger for back country recreation, so please be sure to check the Northwest Avalanche Center site before heading out! https://nwac.us/ | WSDOT

18.5K viewsFeb 25, 2021

Avalanche control mission on Sunday, Feb. 23, on US 97 Blewett Pass | WSDOT

78.9K viewsFeb 24, 2025

We did avalanche control on both US 2 Stevens and I-90 Snoqualmie passes today. Here's a look at the work on Snoqualmie. They detonate a targeted blast to take down snow and other debris to try to keep things as safe as possible for travelers. Both our Stevens-area and Snoqualmie-area teams do a fantastic job! | WSDOT

24.6K viewsJan 9, 2024

Was able to snag some drone footage of our avalanche control team doing some nighttime work up on US 2 Stevens Pass earlier this week. Pretty cool perspective of the work that goes into keep the highway safe. | WSDOT

6.2K viewsMar 14, 2023

A couple new perspectives of the avalanche control work we did on US 2 Stevens Pass on Thursday. Our crew recognized that warming temperatures could loosen the snow pack so we stopped traffic to safely take down the snow and clear it. Nice job, team! | WSDOT

26.7K viewsApr 11, 2020

Good news for pass travelers. After extensive avalanche control and cleanup, both directions of US 2 over Stevens Pass are now open with no restrictions! Thanks for your patience and a huge thanks to our crews for working so hard to get the roadway open. Please be safe as you head over our mountain passes this weekend. | WSDOT

23.1K viewsMar 10, 2017

How WSDOT monitors avalanche threats across the Cascade passes

Avalanche risk assessment on Chinook Pass

4.3K views5 months ago

Big thanks to our crews up on US 2 Stevens Pass for their avalanche control work this morning! As you can see, lots of snow came down and it took quite a bit of work to clear it all. Continue to be cautious as you head over the passes as the forecasts say snow is likely all week. | WSDOT

21.8K viewsFeb 28, 2023

UPDATE 12:30 p.m. Sunday: Work continues on reopening the passes and crews are managing massive amounts of snow and ice. I-90 Snoqualmie and US 97 Blewett passes will open later today, but we do not yet have an ETA. Please do not head out or start lining up at closure points until we provide an update in the early evening. When we are able to reopen passes it will be to get freight moving - any other trips should continue to be delayed as more work remains to make roads ready for general traffic

228.7K viewsJan 8, 2022

FINAL 9:14 a.m.: Both directions of US 2 Stevens Pass are now open. Chains are required on all vehicles except AWD/4WD (though all vehicles must at least have chains or an alternative device available). Please, please, please comply with traction requirements, take it slow and be prepared for delays or closures as they can come with little warning. Our crews are evaluating conditions on US 2 Stevens Pass and while we don't have an exact opening time, our goal is to get the highway reopened this

31.9K viewsFeb 17, 2021

Didn't have a chance to share this one on Monday but thought it was worth sharing today. A look at some of the work our crews did after US 2 Stevens Pass reopened yesterday to try to keep the highway passable. Just a bit of snow up there. Of course, the highway closed later Monday due to another avalanche east of the summit and remains closed this morning (see the post on our page from Monday for details). We'll provide an update on the closure as soon as we hear more from the field today. | WSD

30.4K viewsFeb 23, 2021

Meanwhile, up on US 2 Stevens Pass. ...It's been a busy week for our crews doing avalanche control and clearing snow slides. Here's a sped-up look of some clearing work after avalanche control earlier this week. Watch it with the Benny Hill theme song in your head for added entertainment value. More snow is expected on the mountain passes Friday night into Saturday so be prepared for winter conditions and possible delays. | WSDOT

19.6K viewsFeb 7, 2020

FINAL 1:52 p.m.: The good news? US 2 Stevens Pass is back open with chains required on all vehicles except AWD/4WD (all vehicles must have chains availble). The not so good news? Heavy snow is in the forecast for tonight into tomorrow so more closures and delays are possible. Please be prepared. UPDATE 12:04 p.m.: Both White Pass and Snoqualmie Pass are now open. Again, we will have another update about Stevens Pass at about 2 p.m. UPDATE 9:31 a.m. Monday: We will be reassessing US 2 Stevens Pas

536.2K viewsFeb 21, 2021

Teamwork! During our historic February storms, we worked with our partners at cities and counties to help with their salt and road clearing needs. We released some of our own contracted salt and also put local governments in touch with other suppliers in Spokane. Monday night, our graders escorted two trucks returning to Spokane for more salt over the pass just before it closed due to avalanche danger. Wednesday, with the help of our Washington State Patrol partners, we escorted 15 trucks over t

21.5K viewsFeb 15, 2019

Happy Holidays, from our plows to yours. ❄️ (To proactively answer some question: Yes, this is a real video. No, we didn’t do this instead of plowing the roads; this was filmed in 2021, and it wasn’t snowing that day. Yes, it was on their lunch break. Yes, they’re actually flashing their lights on and off.) Video description: A row of five snowplows flash their lights synchronized to the beat of Trans-Siberian Orchestra’s Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24. | WSDOT

111.2K viewsDec 24, 2024

Seeing lots of snow on the passes. Our crews are out working to keep up, but please help them out by slowing down, making sure you're following traction requirements, giving crews plenty of room and being prepared for possible delays. Snow is supposed to continue all day/night. | WSDOT

9.3K viewsFeb 13, 2023

With SR 20 now fully open, attention fully turns to SR 410 Chinook and SR 123 Cayuse passes. A couple of our communicators headed up to Chinook on Wednesday to take a look at the work happening. Quick, a member of the Alpental Backcountry Avalanche Rescue K9's, led the way. Plowing and snow blowing and avalanche control were all happening as the snowpack continues to strengthen. Crews moved past the main avalanche hazard and there isn't any snow in the forecast so we're still on track to be open

13.9K viewsMay 6, 2021

Last week was challenging for travelers across our state during a storm that brought snow, ice, freezing rain, or all of the above. Not only for travelers, but also for our crews who worked 24/7 to plow and treat our roads to make things safer for everyone to get where they need to go. One of those crews was led by one of our Maintenance Techs, Dustin, who helped plow and treat our roads up in Whatcom County. Dustin took us for a plow ride along I-5 in Whatcom County, and gave us a behind-the-wh

9.9K viewsJan 23, 2024

Here’s your update from SR 410 Chinook Pass and SR 123 Cayuse Pass! Chinook Pass: This week, the clear skies returned, our avalanche crew was busy on the hill, and bulldozers reached the summit log bridge! That snowbank? It’s 20 feet high! Or 3.3 avalanche specialists high... Cayuse Pass: Crews are just getting across the retaining wall on SR 410 and clearing woody debris and rock from SR 123. No estimated reopening time yet, but we’re making progress! Until then, enjoy these views. | WSDOT

24.2K viewsMay 2, 2025

Today's weather is no joke. We're seeing heavy rain, standing water, slides, power outages, debris on the roads and heavy snow in the mountains (here's a look at us working on US 2 Stevens Pass, which closed earlier this AM for avalanche control but is now open). Please: ▪️ Do not go around road closed signs ▪️ Give road workers as much room as possible ▪️ Slow down and have your headlights on ▪️ Follow traction requirements on mountain passes ▪️ Be prepared for delays/closures | WSDOT

14.2K viewsJan 12, 2021

FINAL 8:48 p.m.: I-90 Snoqualmie Pass is open with chains required on all except AWD/4WD. Please follow chain requirements, take it slow, be safe. Pass travel is going to be a challenge all week. Big thanks to the crews work worked to get everything open. UPDATE 8:10 p.m.: US 12 White Pass is open. UPDATE 6:55 p.m.: US 12 White Pass is estimated to open at 8:30 p.m., and I-90 Snoqualmie Pass at 9. Again, those are just ESTIMATES. UPDATE 6:02 p.m.: Both US 2 Stevens and SR 97 Blewett passes are b

54.9K viewsDec 21, 2022

Last week we shared a picture on here of our contractor using liquid nitrogen to freeze the ground on our SR 520 project in Seattle. Here's a short video with a bit more information. They are using this process to control ground water during construction of a new waterline under SR 520 in the Montlake area. You can learn more about the project on our website: https://www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/sr520/montlake/home | WSDOT

4.7K viewsJun 22, 2020

As we come out of the flooding here in Western Washington over the last few days, you may have noticed some heavy equipment blocking the right peak-use shoulder lane along the eastbound US 2 trestle just east of Everett. The reason is our crews have been out around-the-clock removing large wooden debris from beneath the trestle in the Ebey Slough, just east of the Snohomish River. The heavy loader on-site breaks up the logs and debris away from the bridge supports/piers holding up the trestle, a

28.2K viewsDec 7, 2023

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