A poetic recap of Washington’s turbulent 2025 weather
Dec 29, 2025, 6:27 AM
Crews inspect a crack in a levee along the Green River in Tukwila, Wash., Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (Photo: Manuel Valdes, The Associated Press)
(Photo: Manuel Valdes, The Associated Press)
As 2025 comes to a close, here’s a poetic look back at a year defined by drought, storms, and December flooding across the Pacific Northwest. Happy New Year!
2025 weather had its extremes,
Finishing with rising streams
La Niña started the year,
Had snow fans truly sneer
And lo and behold,
Mountain snows were low
January was a dry brute,
Ensuing months followed suit
The dry months had clout,
Adding to the current drought
La Niña though did come through,
Cold February snows turned lips blue
Sea-Tac’s ’20 was the coldest,
While July ’94 was the warmest
Dry conditions were much maligned;
Sea-Tac finished fall eight inches behind
The Bear Gulch fire emitted smoke,
Most stayed away – many did not choke
Yet the year’s true highlight,
Something all can recite
Was a soggy December,
A month to remember
Atmospheric rivers with drenching rain,
Along with wind being quite a pain
Homes filled with flood water,
Roads under too much water
Wind had many with power out,
Response crews went all-out
And hillsides slid downhill,
As if testing our will
As the year comes to an end,
Will La Niña be foe or friend
It usually gets wet and cool,
So far, that’s not been the rule
As we ring in the New Year,
May the weather be less severe
Ted Buehner is the KIRO Newsradio meteorologist. Follow him on X and Bluesky. Read more of his stories here.
