Flood Season Has Arrived: Are You Prepared?

Seattle and the Pacific Northwest have just survived a significant, record-setting rainfall. Flood season hit hard.

With all that moisture, deemed an “atmospheric river” by the National Weather Service, the result was widespread flooding from Washington down into Oregon, with nearly 50 inches in some areas since November!

Seattle broke its February 28th rainfall record, more than doubling it! Almost three inches of rain was recorded at Sea-Tac International Airport, easily besting the 1.46 inches that fell on the same date in 1972 a record it held for 50 years!

Hoquiam and Olympia also set rainfall records.

The first week of March at least two dozen flood warnings were issued for stretches of river in the Northwest, with rivers and streams overflowing their banks after the recent deluge.

From Tacoma down to Portland, major flooding occurred that first week of March, even though the rain there had stopped.

While the “atmospheric river” is unusual for flood season, the transition from winter snows to spring rains invariably affects the Pacific Northwest and results in flooding near rivers and other lowland areas.
In the past six months, most of the western third of Washington is running between 9 and 35 inches above average of rainfall. Seattle set a record for the city’s wettest autumn ever observed with 19.04 inches of rain.

The Center for Western Weather and Water Extremes rated the ongoing atmospheric river as a level 4 out of 5 on its scale, which makes categorical rankings on the basis of integrated vapor transport, or the amount of moisture moving ashore through any given cross-section of atmosphere.

Climate Change

Modern research suggests that climate change is playing a significant role in the intensity and frequency of atmospheric rivers, since a warming atmosphere can hold more water. A 2020 paper in Geophysical Research Letters states that by 2100, atmospheric rivers may no longer be primarily beneficial but rather “primarily hazardous.”

The Seattle area, no stranger to regular precipitation and home to countless rivers and streams, is not prepared for the heavy downpour that it experienced in early March. That is why it’s imperative for homeowners in areas prone to flooding to make sure they get flood insurance before flood season strikes.

SAV-ON can provide a free quote for flood insurance. Call us at 888-867-2866 today and get coverage before another flood! Or visit https://sav-on.com for a rate quote.