As the rainiest autumn on record continues, flood warnings have been going up from county to county. There is still currently a flood warning active for portions of Skajit and Whatcom county, and the east side of King County was riddled with flood warnings just a couple weeks prior in the middle of November. So far, just from the end of September, Seattle has recorded a record-breaking 19 inches of precipitation. While the “atmospheric river” event has concluded, heavy rainfall is expected to continue as normal into the coming weeks.
Hopefully, this next wave of rain won’t be enough to allow too many rivers to breach their banks once again. When rivers overflow, they often flood into surrounding farmland and other lowlands which can damage the final crops of the season and cut farmers off from their livelihood. The oversaturation of water into the soil can lead to landslides and treefall, cutting out power and possibly roads if they impact active infrastructure, such as when I-5 was forced to close due to a landslide earlier this month.
Going into December and the winter holidays, be sure to keep an eye on the forecast for your area. The National Weather Service is an excellent resource to keep track of alerts and other weather safety information so that you can stay prepared for possible extreme weather. It is important to remember to stay safe and aware of possible dangers if this poor weather is to continue.
