A state of emergency has been declared and tens of thousands of people have been ordered to leave their homes in Western Washington after historic rain left rivers at record levels across the state.
More than 5 million people were under flood alerts Thursday morning, including in parts of Montana and a small part of Idaho. Ten to 18 inches of rain have fallen over the Cascade and Olympic mountain ranges in the last 72 hours..
At least 300 National Guard troops have been mobilized to the state, and local emergency response crews with boats were activated. Stranded people in vehicles were rescued overnight in Fall City.
The cause of the emergency is a persistent atmospheric river, which has dumped an extraordinary amount of rain on the Pacific Northwest this week, leaving rivers as much as 15 feet above their normal levels.
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More than 5 million people were under flood alerts Thursday morning, including in parts of Montana and a small part of Idaho. Ten to 18 inches of rain have fallen over the Cascade and Olympic mountain ranges in the last 72 hours..
At least 300 National Guard troops have been mobilized to the state, and local emergency response crews with boats were activated. Stranded people in vehicles were rescued overnight in Fall City.
The cause of the emergency is a persistent atmospheric river, which has dumped an extraordinary amount of rain on the Pacific Northwest this week, leaving rivers as much as 15 feet above their normal levels.
'Catastrophic' Pacific Northwest floods leave 100,000 facing evacuation
"The flooding levels we're looking at are potentially historic in nature," Gov. Bob Ferguson said Thursday afternoon, urging people to listen to official advice and follow evacuation orders.
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