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Rain and floods close highways, prompt slides

02:01 PM PST on Wednesday, January 7, 2009

By kgw.com and AP Staff

Sky-8 aerial tour of flooding

Mt. Hood Hwy reopened after weekend closure
On Sunday, state transportation crews were able to reopen all lanes of Highway 26. The main route between Portland and Mt. Hood had been closed since late Thursday due to a landslide.

The alternate route from Hood River on Highway 35 proved treacherous due to icy conditions. A head-on collision and heavy traffic resulted in long delays on the highway Saturday. Friday evening, three women died in a head-on collision near Parkdale. More: Triple fatal Hwy 35 crash

 More : Highway 26 mud slide | Video

Heavy rains cause chaos
Dozens of major roadways were closed or submerged in running water at the height of last week's flooding, with mudslides reported from the coast to the Columbia River Gorge and Mt. Hood.

The City of Portland received about 3.05 inches of rain in a 24-hour period between Thursday and Friday, shattering a 25-year-old record for rainfall, meteorologists said.

Johnson Creek crested just a half-foot below the record floods of February 1996.

The Oregon Coast accumulated more than twice as much rain as the Metro area, with some areas receiving as much as 7.5 inches of rain. Vancouver saw about 2.77 inches.

Five injured by Lake Oswego slide
Five people were injured when a wall of mud and debris hit a house in Lake Oswego Friday morning. Mud and debris flowed downhill, across a road and then slammed into the home, trapping a family inside. They eventually managed to scramble out a window.

Another slide broke loose near Portland's famed Rose Garden. And in the Eagle Creek area, residents said about 200 homes were blocked by a mud slide on Heiple Road.

 More : Lake Oswego mud slide | Video

Another slide moved across a section of Highway 101 near Cloverdale.

Along Kellog Creek, the water overflowed its banks and flooded about 30 homes.

 Safety: Flood watches & warnings | Tips if your home floods
 More: Neighborhood road closures | Sand bag collection sites

In Sandy, buildings at an industrial park were damaged by floodwaters. The city closed a water main, leaving some without water service. Damage to an optic fiber line caused phone and cell phone outages. More: Governor declares state of emergency

At the peak of the flooding, there were approximately 60 roads closed.

In the Columbia River Gorge, ODOT activated a debris flow warning system for Interstate 84 through the Columbia Gorge and also for Oregon Hwy 6. A landslide blocked a portion of the scenic highway near Vista House.

Coastal flooding
The National Weather Service said last week's storm brought high winds and seas to the Oregon coast; gusts measured up to 60 mph Thursday and waves cresting at about 25 feet.

Vernonia
In Vernonia, where some victims of the December 2007 floods were still living in federally-distributed trailers, city officials were alerting people where shelters could be found, if necessary.

"Anytime there's a flood warning that comes out, everybody gets a little nervous," Police Chief Michael Kay said. "Our main is goal was to be as prepared as possible, so if it did start to flood we could immediately start helping our residents."

Central Oregon
The Deschutes County Sheriff's Office got scores of calls because of wind damage. Scott Jordan, who lives east of Bend, told KTVZ-TV he saw a "twisting, dust-devil looking cloud" take down four of his big trees.

Mt. Bachelor Ski Resort shut down for part of the weekend because of a power outage.

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