SEATTLE NEWS ARCHIVES & FEATURES

Has it been that long since Puget Sound drivers dealt with rain?

Jul 27, 2017, 9:15 AM | Updated: 12:11 pm

traffic, rain...

The culprit of Thursday morning's traffic problems cover a WSDOT traffic camera. (WSDOT)

(WSDOT)

Looking at a traffic map Thursday morning and you’d think drivers in the Greater Seattle area braved a deluge of rain.

Drivers heading from Renton to Bellevue faced an approximate 20-minute delay, according to KIRO Radio traffic reporter Chris Sullivan.

The drive from Everett to Bellevue was delayed between 15 to 20 minutes.

Everett to Seattle was just under an hour and 20 minutes.

Of course, the rain we saw during the morning commute wasn’t much more than a summer drizzle.

“Is this what happens by a few rain droplets?” Sullivan asked.

Apparently, it is.

Seattle entered its 40th day without measurable rain on Thursday, according to the National Weather Service. That’s only occurred five times in the past 45 years. Though some cities’ dry streaks were broken last week, it wasn’t by much — it only takes 1/100th of an inch to rain to count as “measurable.”

So it’s either been long enough since it last rained for drivers to forget how to handle a little water on the road, or they were just caught off guard. What happens when it really starts to rain again in October?

Seattle News Archives & Features

This NOAA satellite image shows the magnitude of the storm moving inland from the Pacific Ocean. (P...

Ted Buehner, KIRO Newsradio Meteorologist

What to expect as Western Washington’s first big fall storm arrives Saturday night

The fall season’s first strong weather system will sweep through Western Washington tonight, bringing strong winds and rain.

12 hours ago

Associated Press

3 dead, including suspect, and 2 deputies critically injured in eastern Washington state

SPOKANE COUNTY, Wash. (AP) — A shooting and subsequent firefight with responding officers left three people dead, including the suspect, and two deputies critically wounded in eastern Washington state Tuesday. Deputies responded to a home in Spokane County, which borders Idaho, around 2:30 p.m. after a woman told her neighbor that she had been shot […]

4 days ago

Sedro-Woolley medications missing...

KIRO 7 News Staff

Student medications found missing or diluted at Sedro-Woolley schools

Students’ medications are missing or diluted at multiple schools across the Sedro-Woolley School District, according to a district statement.

18 days ago

In this photo taken with a smartphone, Mike Herrington, the FBI special agent in charge, speaks to ...

Associated Press

Washington resident charged with conspiracy in Canada shool shooting is ordered detained

SEATTLE (AP) — A Washington state resident charged with conspiracy in one of the worst school shootings in Canada’s history has been ordered detained pending further hearings in the case. Melody Bryant, also known as James Cody Bryant, of Bellingham, Washington, was charged this month with conspiring to murder people in a foreign country. Investigators […]

25 days ago

The location of the Vertical Evacuation Tower will be near the Westport Marina. It will be the thir...

Tom Brock

Rising above the risk: Westport breaks ground on Washington’s newest tsunami refuge

The city of Westport broke ground Saturday on what will become Washington state's latest tsunami-safe location: a new vertical evacuation tower.

1 month ago

Andre Sayles (2) bite of seattle shooting suspect...

Tom Brock

Texts on hold: SPD delays Bite of Seattle shooting records

Interim Seattle Police Chief Andre Sayles says he needs more time before he can release the police department's internal communications the night of the deadly "Bite of Seattle" shootings.

2 months ago

Has it been that long since Puget Sound drivers dealt with rain?