INDEX, Wash. — A week ago, western Washington was hit with a major ice storm which grounded flights and shut down highways for days.
US 2 at Stevens Pass reopened Tuesday after being closed for several days due to icy and dangerous road conditions. Small businesses along the highway said this year's wild weather made on a difference on their bottom line.
"We get a lot of people when the highway is open and not so many when it's closed," said Espresso Chalet owner Karl Klein.
The Espresso Chalet is in Index, Wash. with a population of about 250 people, so it relies on tourism through the mountain passes. The coffee shop was impacted for several days while Stevens Pass remained closed through the busy holiday travel period.
"There were like six inches of ice on the highway it looked like a skating rink. It was really weird," Klein said.
Klein faced challenges with a year of weather extremes.
"In the wink of an eye we went from fire season to snow season," said Klein.
Just a few months ago, the Bolt Creek Fire shut down Highway 2 for two weeks with only locals and firefighters stopping by. The 15,000-acre wildfire raged for a solid month leaving behind more damage than meets the eye.
"The firefighters kept us going as far as having purpose in our life. They were here, we enjoyed them. They were just so nice and so good. They were incredible," Klein said.
The wildfire left some area businesses with a 75% loss in income. Since early December, businesses that took a financial hit because of the fire can apply for federal disaster loans through the Small Business Administration.
"Even though it did impact me for those times, we're fine and I'm going to give that to someone else who may not have had that opportunity to make money. I don't want to take from them," said Klein.
Just before the new year, Stevens Pass is back open with a buzzing highway brining hope for next year.
"2023 will hopefully have less abrupt changes in the extreme weather. Normal would be good. We can use a normal year," Klein said.