Atmospheric River Unleashes Torrential Rain, Floods, and Landslides Across Pacific Northwest

(Photo: wunderground)

The Pacific Northwest is dealing with bad weather because an unending air river, which has been compared to a firehose, is flooding and making things difficult. Heavy rain has caused a lot of problems, such as floods that stopped train service between Seattle and Portland and the closing of many schools and roads in Washington and Oregon.

The National Weather Service says the strong storms will last until Thursday, after which they will slowly fade away. The weather service says that Washington, Oregon, and northern Idaho will get several inches of rain over the next couple of days. This has caused many flood watches, alerts, and recommendations.

In addition to the heavy rain, the area is also having record-high temperatures, which have reached the mid-60s. The warm air and the flow of an atmospheric river from the subtropical Pacific Ocean are making the snow levels very high. This makes floods more likely as the snow melts and more water flows downhill.

Alex Sosnowski, a senior meteorologist at AccuWeather, talks about how difficult it is to drive, especially along Interstate 5 in Washington and Oregon. “Torrential rain at times will lead to poor visibility, excess water on the roads, and the risk of vehicles hydroplaning,” warns Sosnowski.

The Pacific Northwest will get more than a month’s worth of rain in the next 24 to 48 hours. In some places, it will be 4 to 8 inches. There are worries that this heavy rain will cause streets and highways to flood in low-lying places that don’t drain well.

Atmospheric rivers, also called “Pineapple Express,” are changing weather patterns made up of long, thin bands of water vapor that bring warm, tropical moisture from the Pacific. Like a fire hose, these weather systems are a big part of why it rains and snows all the time in the western United States and British Columbia.

As the area deals with this strong storm, the weather service predicts that the amount of rain will gradually drop by Wednesday night and into Thursday. The center of attention will move eastward, hitting the northern Great Basin and northern Rockies. This could cause heavy snow to fall in high places. People and the government in the Pacific Northwest are still on high alert as they deal with the problems this strong atmospheric river is causing.