Parts of Western Washington still reeling from 'atmospheric river' event

The storm that battered Western Washington over the last several days has moved on, but its effects are still being felt.

“As the sun sets over North America this Tuesday afternoon, the storm that moved through Western Washington on Monday is now over south central Canada,” the National Weather Service (NWS) in Seattle tweeted Tuesday. “Dry weather will continue across Washington State on Wednesday.”

The storm — dubbed by meteorologists as an “atmospheric river” — buffeted the region with heavy rainfall and strong winds that lead to extensive flooding, mudslides, evacuation orders, school and road closures, and left thousands without power.

Nowhere were the storm’s effects more palpable than in Northwestern Washington.

Bellingham saw more than 4.5 inches of rain in a span of 36 hours, according to city officials. Local creeks and streams spilled over their banks, and with the already inundated ground unable to absorb more water, parts of the city experienced major flooding. Drone footage released by the city shows kayakers maneuvering through flooded streets and around abandoned cars, some submerged up to their windows.

Both directions of Interstate 5 in Bellingham were closed most of Tuesday because of a mudslide, which state troopers say caused a fallen tree to strike three vehicles on the roadway. A motorist on a different section of I-5 in the city was seriously injured after a tree fell on their vehicle, the Associated Press reported, and a person last seen clinging to a tree amid rising floodwaters just northeast of the city is still missing.

Major flooding was also reported in the small city of Sumas near the Canadian border. Dozens of social media posts show expanses of the area completely underwater. A Tuesday post on the city’s Facebook page estimated that 75% of homes had incurred some water damage, and said first responders and volunteers had rescued “hundreds of people.” It also said flooding had derailed at least 12 cars on a BNSF freight train.

A news release from the Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office said the flooding had displaced roughly 500 people as of Monday night. Of those displaced, roughly 280 are staying in one of three “quickly established” shelters.  

Residents to the south in Mount Vernon were ordered to evacuate Monday as the broad, swift-moving Skagit River began to rise. However, that order was canceled Tuesday after the river crested at 36.98 feet early Tuesday morning, according to Skagit County officials.

The crest mark recorded Tuesday was just inches shy of the city’s all-time record mark of 37.4 feet, set during a major flood event in 1990. The river is considered at flood stage when it reaches 28 feet.

Whatcom and Skagit counties were among the 14 counties covered under an emergency weather proclamation Gov. Jay Inslee issued Monday. The order directs state agencies to utilize state resources and “do everything reasonably possible” to assist city and county governments with relief efforts. It also requires the state guard and Washington’s military and emergency management departments to coordinate response measures.

The other 12 counties covered by the governor’s emergency order are Clallam, Grays Harbor, Island, Jefferson, Lewis, King, Kitsap, Pierce, Mason, San Juan, Snohomish and Thurston.
  
In Clallam County, 10 people — including three children and a baby — were rescued by a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter crew from Oregon Monday as flood waters encroached on a residential area just west of Forks on the Olympic Peninsula.

The storm also ravaged the state’s power grid. More than 155,000 people statewide were without power by Monday afternoon. As of Tuesday evening, the figure was down to 28,287. Most of those outages — 4,391 — were in Skagit County.

Seattle managed to weather the storm pretty much unscathed. Strong winds — speeds peaked at 48 mph, according to the NWS — left thousands without power and a few inches of rain showered the city, but spells of major flooding like those seen in other areas of Western Washington were not observed here.

The wind temporarily grounded all flights leaving and entering the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and Boeing Field Monday morning — which affected flights trying to land in the area — but the ground order only lasted for a period of a few minutes. Windspeeds at the airport peaked at 52 mph Monday, the NWS said.   

Residents in southern cities like Tacoma and Olympia also experienced periods of heavy rainfall, strong winds and power outages over the weekend into Monday, but sunny skies and dry streets were the norm by Tuesday morning.

The NWS is forecasting dry weather Wednesday with a good chance of light rain on Thursday. It expects scattered showers with sun breaks through the weekend.