Rising rapidly, the Skagit River crossed the threshold into flood stage Tuesday morning, Dec. 5 and is expected to crest as a major flood this evening.
Skagit County emergency officials are focusing their response at Hamilton and points east. No evacuations have been ordered yet, county Communications Manager Jenn Rogers said.
“We are working with the Red Cross to set up a shelter for displaced people upriver,” Rogers said Tuesday morning in a text message. “We are distributing sand and sandbags to fire and dike districts that are requesting them.”
Portions of South Skagit Highway and Lyman Hamilton Highway are closed with water over the road, according to the Skagit County website.
The latest river forecast shows the Skagit near Concrete cresting at 38.02 feet at 10 p.m. Tuesday, or 5.5 feet above major flood stage. The river is predicted to crest in Mount Vernon about 3.5 feet over major flood stage on Wednesday afternoon.
This week’s flooding is being compared to the 2021 floods on the Skagit, where the river gauge reading peaked at 38.93 feet in Concrete.
In Whatcom County on Tuesday morning, the Nooksack River is close to cresting about one foot below flood stage at Cedarville, upriver from Everson.
Road closures in Whatcom County at 9 a.m.included Mack, Goodwin and Sorensen roads, Public Information Officer Amy Cloud said.
“The potential for flooding on the Nooksack appears to be pretty minor,” John Gargett, deputy director of the Sheriff’s Office Division of Emergency Management, said late Monday morning. “However, we are monitoring it. As conditions change, we’ll be updating [the forecast].”
Whatcom and Skagit counties, and much of the rest of Western Washington, is on a flood watch through Thursday morning.
An extraordinarily moisture-laden and warm storm system was parked over the region Tuesday morning, the National Weather Service said.
“An atmospheric river continues to have the region firmly in its crosshairs,” an online Weather Service forecast discussion said. “Snow levels remain as high as 9,000 to 10,000 feet across portions of the area early this morning, with rainfall rates of 0.25 to 0.5 inches per hour across much of the lowlands and higher in the mountains.”
Forecasters warned of the potential of flash flooding near the Sourdough and Bolt Creek burn scars.
In addition, the Weather Service issued warnings about an increased threat of landslides in Western Washington due to heavy soil moisture.
Rain is predicted for Mt. Baker Ski Area on Tuesday, but a colder storm expected later in the week should bring more snow to the mountain, according to the ski area’s website.
The ski area reported a 45-inch base at Heather Meadows on Saturday, Dec. 2, and officials there say they may be able to open some slopes as early as this weekend.
