Washington: Snow closes three mountain passes until Friday

Heavy snowfall and an unstable snowpack in the mountains have created such an extremely high risk of avalanches that state transportation officials on Thursday closed all major passes -- Snoqualmie, Stevens and White -- until they can reassess the danger on Friday.
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"This is fairly uncommon," state Department of Transportation spokesman Travis Phelps. "Last year was the first year in quite some time we've had all three of the passes closed ... We've had a tremendous amount of snow."
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Some forecasts have called for 5 to 6 feet of snow in the Cascades through Saturday, though the National Weather Service gave a slightly more conservative estimate Thursday afternoon.

March '07: Scientists: Cascade Snowpack is NOT Down 50%. Researcher Fired Anyway - Right Mind

The Cascade Mountain snowpack in Washington and Oregon has supposedly declined fifty-percent since 1950. That alarming statistic has taken on a life of its own in the Northwest. The problem is, Northwest scientists say it's not accurate. But when a leading researcher tried to set the record straight, he lost a prestigious appointment.