SKYKOMISH, Wa — As the damage from this week’s storm takes hold across western Washington, local economies have growing concerns over what the road ahead has in store, as road closures persist.
US-2 remains shut down from milepost 50 near Skykomish to just outside Leavenworth, following multiple stretches of damage caused by landslides, washout, and flooding.
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It now cuts off the most popular drive to the Bavarian Village of Leavenworth, which was without power until Saturday morning, and the Stevens Pass Ski Resort.
In what is typically one of Leavenworth’s busiest weekends of the season for their “Village of Lights”, the Chamber of Commerce says that they had to push back the famous display until next weekend instead.
“We’re excited to share that our light crews will begin getting everything back in place starting Monday.” A spokesperson wrote in a statement, adding that the full impact on revenue will not be known until the New Year.
Stevens Pass Ski Resort has yet to open for the season, due to already low snowfall this year; however, this week’s onslaught of warmer temperatures and heavy rain has depleted the mountain once again.
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It could also face complications from the long-term repairs that will be needed to fix the structural integrity of US-2, which is a critical artery for those trying to reach the slopes.
In a statement to KOMO News, a spokesperson for the resort wrote:
“At this time, our focus is on supporting our employees and ensuring their safety and well-being as we continue to assess conditions. We don’t have an operational update to share right now, and our leadership team is fully engaged in on-the-ground response efforts. We’re continuing to work closely with WSDOT and local partners and will share more information as conditions stabilize and assessments progress.”
Meanwhile, the many towns that line the highway leading to Leavenworth and the resort, such as Skykomish, say they rely upon the heavy traffic in the winter months for revenue.
“Business has been a lot slower than usual, which it was already slow,” said Taylor Coniber, who works at LouSki’s Deli right off US-2 in Skykomish.
The town itself was hit by quite a bit of flooding, leaving several inches of water in its own school, as well as numerous homes. The storm also knocked out power earlier in the week, leaving residents still in the dark on Saturday night.
Coniber says their store has been kept running by a generator.
However, keeping their revenue running is a far different story. She says she is very worried that drivers will end up ignoring the highway, as WSDOT’s timeline for repairing US-2 remains up in the air.
“There’s no way it’s not going to affect people,” she said.
The local economies tied to US-2 remain just a fraction of the examples of what this historic storm has brought upon the region.
“It was quite intimidating, honestly, I’ve experienced flooding up here before, but this is a lot more than we’ve seen in a long time.” said Coniber. “[But] that’s the cost of having a highway right along a river’s edge, because rivers move, and they move a lot of things.”
