SEATTLE – A warm, windy Pacific storm dumped heavy rain Monday on Western Washington, killing an elk hunter and prompting warnings of record flooding on a handful of rivers.
More than six inches of rain fell in 24 hours in some areas, the National Weather Service reported.
Gov. Chris Gregoire declared a state of emergency for 18 counties, authorizing use of guardsmen and allowing state emergency management officials to coordinate state assistance to counties in the flood path.
“Our number one priority right now is to make sure that we are securing the safety of our citizens,” the governor said, urging residents to heed evacuation warnings.
The body of a 20-year-old Seattle hunter, Andy McDonald, was recovered late Monday when his truck was pulled from the Cowlitz River in southwest Washington, Lewis County Sheriff Steve Mansfield said.
Some 200 to 225 elk hunters were evacuated from 60 to 70 hunting camps near the Cowlitz River in the Packwood area, Mansfield said.
Residents of low-lying areas near rivers were encouraged to leave, as some rivers were expected to surpass flood stage by more than 10 feet.
A number of rivers jumped their banks Monday, sending water over farmland, flooding some rural homes and closing many roads.
About 16 National Guardsmen were sent late Monday to eastern Skagit County in northwest Washington to rescue an unknown number of people who did not heed an evacuation recommendation before flood waters blocked their escape route from several small towns near Concrete, county spokesman Don McKeehen said. Another 150 troops were expected today, he said.
Flood waters near Concrete caused $17 million of property damage and 3,400 households were evacuated in 2003, said Dan Berentson, another Skagit County spokesman. He said the weather service warned Skagit County officials to expect worse conditions than the 2003 flood.
In the King County town of North Bend, about 30 miles east of Seattle, the Snoqualmie River slopped over a levee, prompting emergency officials to urge residents of two neighborhoods to evacuate, county spokesman David Tushin said Monday night. He could not estimate how many people might be affected.
A large mudslide near Skykomish, northeast of Seattle, blocked eastbound lanes of U.S. 2, a major east-west route across Washington, while a mudslide earlier Monday near Tacoma delayed an Amtrak passenger train.
The warm, moisture-laden storms that began during the weekend were expected to lash the region through Wednesday, the weather service said.
As of 4 p.m. Monday, Stampede Pass in the Cascade Mountains east of Seattle had 8.34 inches of rain in the previous 24 hours, while the Whatcom County town of Maple Falls, near the Canadian border, had 6.26 inches, Shelton had 6.07 inches, Olympia had 4.87 inches and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport recorded 3.77 inches.
In Sedro-Woolley, United General Hospital evacuated about 15 patients as a precautionary measure.
Officials at Mount Rainier National Park, which had more than 10 inches of rain in the 24 hours ending Monday afternoon, closed the main park road, turned visitors away and sent employees home early via the only exit road open – Highway 410 over Chinook Pass.
“We want to prevent visitors getting trapped inside the park. The road is vulnerable to washouts in several key places, and there is only one way out,” said Superintendent Dave Uberagua.
Officials evacuated more than 100 students from Camp Cispus, an environmental camp near Randle in southwest Washington, fearing that access to the camp would be cut off by high water.
An Amtrak train carrying 83 passengers hit a mudslide on the tracks Monday four miles north of Tacoma, said Amtrak spokeswoman Vernae Graham. Two people had minor injuries and were taken off the Bellingham-to-Portland train, which was delayed for about two hours.
Gregoire’s declaration allows state agencies in the 18 western and central Washington counties affected to spend money and use resources to aid local governments and communities.
The storm was also causing problems in Oregon. The persistent rains caused severe flooding of the five rivers that feed Tillamook Bay. The U.S. Coast Guard and Tillamook County sheriff’s office were rescuing flood victims late Monday and the Red Cross opened a shelter to house them. More than a dozen people were there when the shelter opened at 5:30 p.m.
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