Rain and wind forced Olympia officials to close Yauger Park on Thursday, prematurely ending the season for Capital Business Machines and the six other women's teams that play league games at the park.
For others, the rain and wind caused traffic accidents and power outages and raised the specter of flooding.
The Olympia area received nearly 2 inches of rain in the 24-hour period ending Thursday afternoon. The Olympia airport reported a wind gust of 33 mph Thursday morning.
The blustery wet weather will continue through the weekend, and it signals the beginning of the rainy season that some Washingtonians curse and others bless, said Naeemah Cushmeer, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service in Seattle.
"(It) just came in with a bang," she said.
Once the rain moves east, weather conditions will trap fog and low clouds, keeping temperatures down, Cushmeer said.
Long-term forecast
Government forecasters predicted Thursday that Washington, along with California and Oregon, will see warmer-than- average temperatures this winter. Rainfall should be in line with long-term averages, according to the annual winter outlook by the National Weather Service.
The winter will bring equal chances of above-, below- or near-normal temperatures to other parts of the country, the report said.
"Without a strong El Nino or La Nina signal as a guide, there is more uncertainty in our forecast, but we do expect winter to bring its typical weather variability," said John Jones Jr., the agency's deputy director.
El Nino and La Nina are unusual ocean conditions in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean that can affect weather around the world.
Closer to home, the closure of Yauger Park wasn't a big surprise. The park's primary purpose is to hold rainwater.
"It's supposed to flood," said Terry Rodgers, recreation and facilities manager for Olympia Parks, Arts and Recreation. "Its purpose is a storm retention area during these major storm events."
The park's traditional closing date is Oct. 31. The earlier date affects leagues managed by the Thurston County Parks and Recreation and the Thurston County Youth Soccer Association.
Based on recent experience, Johnson, the soccer team's captain, wasn't too disappointed by the news.
"The field was so muddy we could barely walk," she said. "I hurt my leg running in it. It's almost harder to play."
The closure of the park forced one league to move to a different field, said Wendi Garrison, recreation program supervisor for the county department.
"Luckily, it kind of came at the end of the season," she said. "It happens in sports."
Skokomish River
The Skokomish River in Mason County was expected to cause major flooding, with "deep and quick flood waters" inundating some residential areas, U.S. Highway 101, state Route 106 and much of the farm land in the Skokomish Valley, the National Weather Service predicted.
The Skokomish reached 16.5 feet at 5 p.m. Thursday. Flood stage is 16 feet. The river is expected to crest near 16.8 feet this afternoon and fall below flood stage Saturday morning.
The weather kept utility crews busy early Thursday tending to scattered outages, mostly in isolated areas, Puget Sound Energy spokeswoman Dorothy Bracken said.
The largest outage affected 1,700 customers in Rochester. It happened when a tree branch snagged a power line, Bracken said. Power was restored by 7:30 a.m.
In Shelton, downed power lines south of Pioneer Middle School, 611 Agate Road, left 2,000 homes without electricity about 11 a.m. Service was restored by about 1:30 p.m., according to Mason Count Public Utility District 3.
Wet roads contributed to a flurry of traffic collisions, but no one was seriously injured, authorities said.
In Olympia, the driver of a Ford F150 pickup failed to stop in time for cars at a stoplight early Thursday at the corner of Henderson Boulevard and North Street, police said.
The truck caused a chain- reaction collision involving three vehicles. Three children riding in one car were taken to Providence St. Peter Hospital with neck pain. But no one was seriously hurt, Officer Larry Gabor said.
The State Patrol reported six fender-bender collisions in Thurston County on Interstate 5. The collisions involved minor damage and did not appear to be weather-related, Trooper Johnny Alexander said.
Scott Gutierrez and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Christian Hill covers the city of Lacey and the military for The Olympian. He can be reached at 360-754-5427 or at chhill@olympia.gannett.com.
1.85
Inches of rain recorded in the 24 hours ending at 5 p.m. Thursday at the Olympia Regional Airport.
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On the Web
National Weather Service: www.wrh.noaa.gov/Seattle/
National Weather Climate Prediction Center: www.cpc.ncep.noaa.gov