A few random snowflakes struck Benton County Emergency Services Coordinator Peggy Peirson as she walked in downtown Corvallis on Friday afternoon.

She wasn’t injured.

Peirson might well have taken the brunt of the harsh weather predicted earlier for Benton County and the surrounding area. There were flood watches and warnings. There was even talk of snowfall, maybe up to three inches.

It didn’t exactly work out that way on Friday.

You never know, Peirson said. Weather is as unpredictable as, well, weather. But as it stands now, she said, Benton County is just going to remain slightly damp. Flood watches and warnings have been canceled for the area. Forecasters now say the Marys and Luckiamute rivers are going to stay where they belong and not overflow their banks.

“Winter weather advisories are in effect all around us, but so far are focused more north of Benton County,” she said.

For reports of nasty weather from the National Weather Service, Peirson said, “we are considered more ‘Southern Willamette Valley’ along with Eugene, but often tend to get some of the same weather forecast for the ‘Central Willamette Valley’ along with Salem.”

Peirson said weather spotters reported snowfall Friday afternoon only at higher elevations in and around Corvallis.

The National Weather Service weekend forecast for Corvallis calls for rain, with a slight chance of snow. High temperatures are expected to be about 40 both today and Sunday with lows in the mid- to high 30s. The rain is likely to continue into the first part of next week, but temperatures are expected to rise somewhat.

Rains pound Portland area

After the storm: Library floods, books ruined

By The Associated Press

PORTLAND — A flood raised by a New Year’s Day storm destroyed thousands of books at Estacada’s library Friday.

“Everything on bottom shelves is gone,’’ said library director Katinka Bryk.

The town is in Clackamas County, where the rains were heavy and Gov. Ted Kulongoski declared a state of emergency.

Rainfall totals in the area topped 3 inches, and low-lying areas were flooded. About 30 families in a mobile home park were evacuated temporarily, and as many as 60 roads were closed.

Friday morning, county officials declared a state of emergency and told residents to stay home if they could.

In Sandy, buildings at an industrial park were damaged by floodwaters. The city closed a water main, leaving some without water service. Damage to an optic fiber line caused phone and cell phone outages. The city’s 911 service was out for a time.

Highway 26 was closed Friday night by a slide 10 miles east of Sandy. Detours were set up for cars but trucks were being directed to take Oregon 35.

Packed snow was reported on Highway 26 over the Coast Range, with motorists instructed to use traction tires or carry chains.

At the Estacada library, the water receded but left behind a layer of silt. Mud also buried the parking lot. The 12,000-square-foot building opened in mid-2006.

Elsewhere in Estacada, a landslide knocked a rural home off its foundation, resulting in a fire that destroyed it. Officials said they’re investigating, but it might have been an electrical fire.

No injuries were reported.

Earlier Friday a three-story house in an upscale development in Lake Oswego was ruined in a landslide, and five people were taken to the hospital with injuries described as not life-threatening.

The rainstorm left urban streets and state highways blocked with standing water, mud and rocks.

Public health officials advised avoiding contact with the water of the Willamette River, which often is contaminated with sewage after big storms.

Estacada’s treatment plant was overwhelmed by runoff, resulting in the release of semi-treated water into the Clackamas River, a tributary of the Willamette.

Health officials also warned people about floodwater contaminated by septic tanks, calling for a thorough washing afterward, or water from wells that have been flooded, calling for boiling it before use.

Low-lying areas along the Oregon coast and rivers flowing into the Pacific Ocean also had some minor flooding. In Tillamook County, a shelter was set up at the fairgrounds. The Red Cross said it closed it at noon Friday.