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41 °F Forecast | Road Cams Tuesday, March 16, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find a Rental Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Email Story to a Friend February 26, 2004 Cara Wirt said a tree limb snapping and falling onto her Vancouver Avenue house and front yard late Tuesday night sounded like a case of wine bottles being dropped on her porch. Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Wind flings tree limb onto house By ANITA BURKE Mail Tribune The experts at the National Weather Service’s Medford office said it was a southerly flow engendered by an off-shore, low-pressure system, but to Vancouver Street resident Cara Wirt it sounded like someone dropping a case of wine bottles on her porch. The high winds ripping through the Rogue Valley Tuesday night and Wednesday jolted Wirt and her husband awake in the middle of the night. As a sleepy Wirt puzzled over just what she was hearing, neighbors saw that a giant locust tree branch had crashed onto the roof of Wirt’s home. They rushed over to check on the couple, who were still nestled safe in their bed. "It was just such a big limb compared to our little, old house," Wirt said. The damage had her husband in the attic swearing Wednesday night, but Wirt said the home was due for a new roof soon anyway. Advertisement A low-pressure system off the coast created the powerful gusts of wind, Medford-based National Weather Service hydrometeorological technician Murray Orr said. "It was wound pretty tight," he said of the weather system. Sharp differences between areas of low atmospheric pressure and areas of high pressure boosted wind speeds. A gust peaked at 51 mph at the Medford airport at 5:14 a.m., Orr said. Winds were blustering along at 41 mph at the time. Sustained winds ranged between 20 and 30 mph much of the day, the weather service reported. Mount Ashland was closed Wednesday as extreme winds created blizzard conditions on the slopes and drifted snow across the access road, the ski hill’s snow phone recording said. The hill will reopen today, weather permitting. Toppled trees, downed branches and other moderate damage were common around the valley, Orr said. California appears to have taken the brunt of the storm, with Pacific Gas & Electric reporting 159,000 customers without power at some point Wednesday between Bakersfield and the Oregon border. Customers in the San Francisco Bay Area represented about half that number, according to the Associated Press. Heavy rain caused some lowland flooding and snow clogged roads in the Sierra Nevada. By Wednesday evening, wind speeds in the Rogue Valley were tapering off as the low-pressure center moved onshore, Orr said. The system is expected to bring showers — rain in the valley, snow in the mountains — today and into Friday, he said. Reach reporter Anita Burke at 776-4459, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback 3 WEEKS FREE! ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S RESOURCES Oregon Road Conditions & Cams SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Food for Thought Wellness Connection Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities Prime Times