Category: Weather

The rain has started again, and there was a failure in the levee alongside the Green River in Tukwila at around 11:30 a.m.

King County emergency officials sent out a warning of ‘life threatening flash flooding’ for the nearby low-lying area of some 46,000 residents.
There were no injuries as a result of the breach, though. Soon thereafter the area under threat was narrowed down and involved only about 1,100 people, who were urged to evacuate.
The county’s flash flood warning ended by 6.30 pm.

Here are updated pictures of the Snoqualmie Falls from the Seattle Times.
The Snoqualmie river was at major flooding level for much of Wednesday and Thursday.

Kai Uyehara and Paige Cornwell write for the Seattle Times: 

The opening salvo of a major atmospheric river hit the Pacific Northwest on Monday, drenching much of Western Washington with heavy rain that is forecast to continue at least until Thursday.
The National Weather Service warned of a high risk of widespread and significant river flooding.
South of Puget Sound, the Puyallup, Nisqually, Cowlitz and Carbon rivers were already seeing waters about to spill over their banks by 7 p.m. Monday, with serious flooding expected within hours.

There was a break in the rainy weather today here in the city— with a powder blue sky, a little late afternoon sun, and blustery conditions.

I thought it too cold to go for a walk today—44°F (6°C)— then changed my mind at the last minute before dark.

The sun wasn’t out today, and it was a cold fall day here in the city.
The low this morning was 38°F (3°C) and the high 52°F (11 °C).

The sun was out, with broken clouds, today.
It was only 48°F (9°C) outside, though, and I bundled up for my walk this afternoon.

There was light rain on and off all weekend here in the city, and a little fog in the Seattle’s low-lying areas this morning. Some trees still have leaves on, but a lot have now shed it all.

Elsewhere in Washington State, in the Yakima River Basin, the severe drought conditions continue. Conrad Swanson writes for the Seattle Times ‘This might be the driest year in recent memory, fresh on the heels of severe droughts last year and the year before’.

It rained on and off all day, and about 1.2 in (30 mm) was recorded here in the city the last 24 hours by late Wednesday night.

The heavy winds knocked the power out for tens of thousands of Seattle metro residents last night. The power was still getting restored across the city and Western Washington today.

There was a break in the rain this afternoon, and I walked down to Elliott Bay Bookstore on 10th Avenue.
The store was still without power, but customers were allowed in.
I looked like they used their phones to pay for their purchases through the store’s website.

Laurin Girgis reporting for the Seattle Times:
Friday’s rain and gusty winds will continue through the weekend, with somewhere between half an inch to 1 ½ inches of precipitation accumulating in Seattle over Saturday and Sunday.
National Weather Service meteorologist Dev McMillian said Friday’s torrent of rain and wind came from an atmospheric river: a long band of moisture stretching across the Pacific Ocean and resulting in large amounts of precipitation. Saturday and Sunday, despite more precipitation coming in, will not be an atmospheric river, McMillian said. Rainfall rates Saturday through Monday are expected to be less than Friday.