A significant winter storm is on its way to the Gorge, with the National Weather Service calling for the storm to arrive sometime Thursday morning and bring a large amount of snow to the region, along with strong east winds in the western portion of the Gorge.  The National Weather Service’s winter storm watch for Hood River and the Central Gorge calls for five to ten inches of snow, with ice accumulations possible Thursday night and Friday, plus gusty east winds of up to 70 miles per hour from the Cascade Locks and Stevenson area westward causing blowing and drifting snow and limited visibility for travel.  In The Dalles and the Eastern Gorge snow is expected as well, with an east wind of 15 miles per hour with gusts to 25, and the snow changing to freezing rain late Thursday night and early Friday as a warm front overrides cold air at the surface.  Temperatures are expected to be in the twenties, perhaps dipping to the teens in the Central Gorge.

With the winter storm approaching, road crews around the region are gearing up for trying to keep roads clear.  Priorities for road plowing are essentially the same throughout the region, starting with high traffic volume roads and school bus routes, followed by remaining paved roads, then subdivision, cul-de-sac, and outlying dwellings on gravel roads.  The Oregon Department of Transportation says crews have started working 12-hour, round the clock shifts.   On Tuesday and Wednesday, crews were spreading de-icer, magnesium chloride with rust inhibitor, on area roads with plows and sanding trucks on standby for use as needed.  ODOT adds it will closely monitor Interstate 84 through the Gorge, and would close the freeway if conditions become unsafe.  Nighttime warming shelters will be available in the region, with The Dalles Warming Place at St. Vincent dePaul on 315 West 3rd from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m., and the Hood River Warming Shelter at Hood River Valley Christian Church on 975 Indian Creek Road from 6 p.m. to 7 a.m.

The Oregon Department of Transportation does not recommend driving in severe weather conditions, but the agency also says travelers need to use caution and observe a few common sense rules for navigating hazardous weather conditions.  Most important is to get to your destination before conditions turn nasty and unsafe, consider waiting until a storm passes to travel, and if you must drive look out for others and allow plenty of time to get where you are going.  Don’t abandon your vehicle, as it prevents crews from clearing the road and emergency services from getting to the people who need them.  If a storm knocks out power to traffic signals, treat intersections like an all-way stop.  And watch for plows, being sure to stay at least three car lengths back.

Area power providers are bracing themselves for potential outages due to the expected winter storm in the region.  Pacific Power encourages its customers to first check their fuses and circuit breakers if there is an outage, then if they find it was caused outside their home to call and report it.  Pacific Power also advises people to stay away from and don’t drive over downed power lines and utility lines, check on neighbors, especially those who may need special assistance, and keep mobile devices charged so they may be used in an emergency.  Also turn on your porch light, as after crews complete repairs, they patrol the area of the power failure to see if lights are on.  In addition, every home should have an emergency outage kit that includes a flashlight, battery-operated radio and clock, extra batteries, non-perishable foods, manual can opener, bottled water, and blankets.

Boys Basketball The Dalles 85, Columbia 69:  The Riverhawks gained their first win of the season. Heritage 61, Hood River Valley 42:  The Timberwolves used a stifling defense to shut down the Eagle offense and grab the win. Stevenson 70, Goldendale 51 Life Christian 53, Horizon Christian 41   Girls Basketball Heritage 44, Hood River Valley 39:  The Timberwolves snapped a 39-39 tie in the final minute to grab the win.  Lauren Orr scored 13 points for HRV, while Emily Curtis added 11. Goldendale 64, Stevenson 35

The Mid-Columbia Fire and Rescue Volunteer Association, Dallesport Fire District, The Salvation Army, and St. Vincent dePaul will be conducting the 2016 Project ELFF (Everyone Loves a Fire Fighter) canned food drive this week in The Dalles.  Fire trucks will be out and collecting canned food donations on the east side of The Dalles Tuesday evening from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.  They will move to the west side of The Dalles Wednesday evening from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m., and finish up in Dallesport Thursday evening from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.  This is the 30th year for the Project ELFF canned food drive, with donations going to food banks in The Dalles and Dallesport.

The Port of Hood River Commission has given the go-ahead for making an application to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s FASTLANE program for funding for preliminary planning for a replacement of the Hood River/White Salmon Interstate Bridge.  Port Communications and Special Projects Director Genevieve Scholl says they will be submitting to the small grants program, which has a minimum ask amount of five million dollars and a 40 percent match requirement.  The Port will provide the matching funds through bridge toll revenues.  The deadline to make the application is December 15, but when the Port would get an answer is unknown.  Scholl says they hope to learn if the application is successful by the end of the current fiscal year.

North Wasco County School District 21 is moving into the next phase of long-term facilities planning, aiming towards going to voters with a bond measure in the near future.  Superintendent Candy Armstrong says they have a facilitator in place, and the process of coming up with names to take part in a group that will help make recommendations on the direction the district will go is underway.  Armstrong did emphasize the D-21 board continues to have a goal of putting a bond measure before voters in May 2017.  Monday evening, the district board will hold a worksession with Mosier Community School officials about future needs for that facility, beginning at 6:30 p.m. in The Dalles Middle School library.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Bureau of Reclamation and Bonneville Power Administration will hold one of a series of public meetings in preparation for an environmental impact statement on operations of 14 federal dams on the Columbia and Snake rivers and salmon restoration in The Dalles on Tuesday.  The meeting is one of 15 scheduled after a U.S. District Court ruling last May sent dam operators back to the drawing board and set a new planning process in motion.  That decision rejected the federal agencies’ previous salmon restoration plan, a victory for fish advocates.  The meeting in The Dalles will take place from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center.

Boys Basketball Hood River Valley 66, Redmond 37 Sandy 73, The Dalles 54 Columbia 60, Lyle-Wishram 35 Perrydale 53, Dufur 43 Sherman 79, Grant Union 53 Sherman 85, Stanfield 67 South Wasco 53, North Lake 28 Damascus Christian 37, South Wasco 24 Damascus Christian 40, Klickitat 24 Klickitat 57, North Lake 38 Horizon Christian 61, Mitchell-Spray 15 Horizon Christian 55, Arlington 51 (overtime) Mabton 50, Goldendale 49   Girls Basketball Sandy 36, The Dalles 34 Hood River Valley 47, LaGrande 41 Madras 33, Hood River Valley 28 Columbia 53, Lyle-Wishram 38 Stevenson 57, Hudson’s Bay 32 Grant Union 55, Sherman 33 Sherman 53, Stanfield 47 Damascus Christian 44, Klickitat 24 North Lake 35, South Wasco 28 South Wasco 38, Klickitat 24 Horizon Christian 55, Mitchell-Spray 20 Arlington 34, Horizon Christian 27 Perrydale 31, Dufur 21 Mabton 62, Goldendale 33   Wrestling Jonathan Urenda of The Dalles finished sixth at 195 pounds to lead the Riverhawks effort at the Tyrone Woods Memorial Tournament in Oregon City.  The Dalles was tied for sixteenth in the team standings.   Goldendale’s Isaiah Rowley was third at 285 pounds at the A.C. Davis Invitational in Yakima, with the Timberwolves finishing 12th as a team.