National Weather Service issues flood warnings in King County
Feb 14, 2016, 4:36 PM | Updated: Feb 16, 2016, 8:51 am
King County sheriff's deputies use a raft to rescue motorists stranded amid the flooding waters near Carnation, Wash. (KCSO)
(KCSO)
The National Weather Service in Seattle has issued a flood warning for multiple Washington rivers, as well as a watch for portions of northwest and west-central Washington.
Related: Weather forecast and conditions for western Washington
The flooding changed from minor to moderate in severity for the following areas:
• Snoqualmie River near Snoqualmie Falls and Carnation, affecting King County.
• Skykomish River near Gold Bar, affecting Snohomish County.
• Snohomish River near Monroe and at Snohomish; South Fork Stillaguamish River near Granite Falls, affecting Snohomish County.
• Tolt River near Carnation, affecting King County.
• Cowlitz River at Randle, affecting Lewis County.
The National Weather Service says the flooding was 54 feet near Carnation as of Monday afternoon and was expected to rise above flood stage this afternoon, cresting near 56.3 feet at around 10 a.m. Tuesday. The river is expected to fall below flood stage Wednesday morning.
At 56 feet, the Snoqualmie River will cause widespread flooding from Fall City downstream through Carnation and Duvall, inundating much of the farm land and numerous roads, NWS says.
Snoqualmie River near the Falls corresponds to a phase 3 flood in the King County flood system.
The watch has been issued for King, Pierce, Snohomish, Skagit, Whatcom, and Lewis counties.
Heavy rain is forecast along the slopes of the Cascades Sunday night through Tuesday morning, as strong westerly winds steer a plume of moisture over Western Washington, according to the National Weather Service. Snow levels will remain high and models show as much as seven inches of rain over that period. Rivers flowing off the west slopes of the Cascades are expected to rise with river flooding possible.
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