Sue Sitter/PCT Strong winds and steady snowfall early on Feb. 1 left drifts up to several feet high in some rural Pierce County communities. Balta residents Wesley and Rita Muffenbier were trapped in their home when large piles of snow pressed against every door of the house. Rita, shown, tries to open the door to her garage enough to pass a shovel through on Feb. 2. “We’ve never seen it this bad,” said Rita, who has lived with her husband in their Balta home since 1979. Pierce County resident Al Jacobson helped the couple dig out later that day.

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