Flood, Northwest and Atmospheric
Digest more
Another atmospheric river has brought more rain to the Pacific Northwest, after days of record flooding in the region.Timelapse satellite imagery from the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere (CIRA),
Some rivers may break records. Already, overnight into Tuesday, the Naselle River near Naselle, Washington, has gone from its normal 5 foot depth to nearly 20 feet deep, growing by 10 feet in 12 hours and coming within less than 1 foot of the historical record.
The Skagit River is predicted to crest at more than 47 feet near the town of Concrete, north of Seattle, 15 inches above the threshold for a major flooding event.
The moisture from this storm system will help two fast-moving winter storms spread snow across the eastern U.S., with another atmospheric river on its way.
The atmospheric river that brought heavy rain to the Portland area this week has shifted northward, and most of northwest Oregon should now stay mostly dry through Thursday. Some isolated to scattered showers are expected, and south-southwesterly winds gusting up to 20-30 mph could stick around through Wednesday evening.
A global effort to better understand moisture-laden rivers in the sky, like those currently battering the West Coast, will take flight in January.
Residents near a breached levee in Washington state were told to evacuate, just hours after an evacuation alert was lifted for residents near another broken levee in the same county