The white blanket is really covering up the Brrrien area today (including the B-Town Blogmobile above), with upwards of over a foot of snow, and here are some updates to keep in mind as you either continue to hunker down or dare to go out:

SEA-TAC AIRPORT UPDATE:

• Some flights are resuming, others remain canceled. Best bet is to check the Port of Seattle’s airport website here (note: their website appears to be overloaded so be patient). Here’s a statement from that site: Many airlines have suspended or canceled flights, while others are continuing to operate. Travelers should check with their specific airlines for schedule confirmations or changes. Inclement weather at several other major airports has caused delayed arrivals and departures, causing the airlines to have aircraft at the wrong airports for scheduled flights (i.e. if an expected flight from Denver didn’t arrive at Sea-Tac as scheduled in the evening, it cannot depart in the morning).

SCHOOL CLOSURES:

• We’re sure you’re aware of this, but just in case – ALL PUBLIC & PRIVATE CHILDREN’S SCHOOLS ARE CLOSED, as it’s now Winter Break.
• Highline School District’s Admin offices are also CLOSED.
• South Seattle Community College is CLOSED.
• Highline Community College is CLOSED.

CITY OF BURIEN:

• Burien City Hall will be open for limited hours, 10:00am – 2:00pm on Monday, Dec. 22 and Tuesday, Dec. 23. Please check http://www.burienwa.gov for weather related closures and information.
• All Burien Parks and Recreation scheduled programs have been canceled for Monday.
• Road crews continue to plow and sand streets as snow has continued to fall, starting with main arterials and moving to secondary streets when they are able.  More details about priority routes can be found on our Snow & Ice Routes Map [PDF].  Please drive with extreme caution and only if necessary.

CITY OF NORMANDY PARK:

• Normandy Park’s City Hall is CLOSED today due to weather and travel conditions. City Hall will open late on Tuesday, December 23^rd at 10:00AM and close at 2PM.
• Road crews reported most of the main routes have been plowed and sanded.  Please drive with extreme caution and only if necessary.

LIBRARY UPDATES:

• Far as we can tell, both the Burien and White Center library branches are open today from 10am-9pm.
• More info on library closures available here.

OTHER CLOSURES:

• Garbage & recycling service has been CANCELED for today; Waste Management says: “Double volume next regular collection day for each missed container” when in fact it would be TRIPLE VOLUME!; more info here: http://www.wmnorthwest.com/weatherboard.html
• King County District Court will be CLOSED.

METRO BUS SERVICE:

• Once again due to the weather and dangerous driving conditions, King County Metro Transit will be operating approximately half of its normal bus service for Monday, Dec. 22. Information about bus status is available on Metro’s Ice & Snow page, which is updated frequently. You can also call the Metro Customer Information Office at (206) 553-3000, but call volumes are high and there may be a wait to talk to a CIO representative.

OTHER TIPS/COMMENTS:

• To see live road conditions via webcam feeds, go to our Webcams page.
• If you haven’t started your car since the snow first fell, you should start it up. Also, wipe off the windshield and do NOT turn on your wipers, unless your windshield is warmed up and there’s no ice around them – turning on frozen windshield wipers can strip the gears and thus ruin them.
• Make sure your pets are okay. BTB Reader Katie Hicks sends us this email: “Could you please remind people that it is FREEZING outside and they should let their pets that live outdoors IN! It is making me sick to my stomach that I have seen dogs sleeping outside!”

Live webcam view from Sea-Tac Airport
(refresh page to see latest image).

Cancellations and delays continue at Sea-Tac Airport, and here’s the latest bulletin from the Port of Seattle:

Airport is open – two runways are operational.

There are many airline-initiated cancellations.

Backlog of stranded passengers awaiting rebooking.

No local hotel rooms available, many passengers sleeping in airport.

Travelers are advised to contact their airline for flight status and to attempt to rebook from home.

Airport concessions are having trouble getting deliveries, anyone coming to the airport should come prepared.

If you’re planning on flying out anytime soon, be sure to check your flight status at the airport’s Web site: http://hosting.portseattle.org/fids.

To see live road conditions via webcam feeds, go to our Webcams page.

Click here to view the embedded video.

• 3 Artists,1 storefront window, 30 hours straight!
• Join artists Laura Curry and Lori Dillon as they live in the windows of Karuna Yoga until Sat. night Sept. 6th
• Stop by and share a story by writing on the glass, pose for a picture, be entertained and experience Burien in a whole new way!

Here’s a feed – click the image to see a larger version, and refresh the page to see the latest view. (NOTE: as we mentioned above, we haven’t yet perfected these feeds, so if you can get an image, great…if not, sorry…we promise to figure it out eventually!)

Or better yet, get your B-Town B-Hind up there and interact with ‘em!

Here is a link for viewing one of the live webcams that you can actually control (may not be working now but try anyway):

• http://192.168.10.253/CgiStart?page=Single&Language=0
• Usernames to try: burien, burien1, burien2, burien3, burien4, burien5, burien6, burien7, Password: artwalk

[NOTE: If you are asked for a Username/Password for the pic above, enter "admin" and leave the password blank]

The traffic webcam view above is of the scene where,  around 7:10am this morning, a fatal crash and fire blocked all southbound lanes of I-405 in Tukwila near Southcenter causing a major four-mile traffic jam.

The DOT reports that all lanes have been re-opened, but we suggest that you refresh this page to see the latest webcam view.

This does – meet “The Dude From Burien,” sure to be a huge hit on the internets (or not):

Click here to view the embedded video.

And this, where he explains way too much about his “new hat”:

Click here to view the embedded video.

We can’t wait for his next video!

(okay, we lied…we can)