By Jim Haley
Herald Writer
Snohomish County rivers began receding Thursday morning, ending the season’s initial flood threat but putting emergency managers through their paces for the first time in a while.
"It was a good warm-up for us," said Mike McCallister, coordinator with the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management. "It was a good exercise for us to get ready for whatever else might happen" this flood season.
High waters edged toward the tops of riverbanks Wednesday in the wake of a heavy downpour that left several inches of rain on the western slopes of the Cascades.
No damage was reported in any of the river basins, McCallister said.
At about 6:30 a.m. Thursday, the Snohomish River nudged flood stage at the city of Snohomish, McCallister said, but the river stayed within its banks.
The Snohomish is affected by tides upriver as far as Snohomish. The high tide, coupled with floodwaters from the Snoqualmie River, a tributary that originates in King County, pushed the river to flood stage, McCallister said.
But tapering rains and a cold front that lowered the mountain freezing level to about 5,000 feet worked to stem the deluge, he said.
On Wednesday, the south fork of the Stillaguamish River near Granite Falls rose to near flood stage after a sudden surge from a heavy downpour on the north flanks of Mount Pilchuck.
The last time the water rose this high was in November 1999. McCallister said the last time a major flood hit the area was in February 1996.
You can call Herald Writer Jim Haley at 425-339-3447
or send e-mail to haley@heraldnet.com.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
