Warnings still in effect as Snohomish River rises well above flood stage

MONROE — It’s been a long, wet flood season. And they’re not out of the water yet.

Flood warnings were still in effect Wednesday as people in Snohomish County kept an eye on rising and falling rivers.

Some had taken steps to protect property or had moved out of the water’s path. Others went about their business as usual.

The Snohomish River continued to swell Wednesday near Snohomish and Monroe.

The rising water was flooding residences, inundating farmland and roads, and likely damaging levees, said meteorologist Josh Smith with the National Weather Service in Seattle. He expected the river to crest Wednesday night.

Andrew Hartzell, who lives along the flood-prone Ben Howard Road near Monroe, said he wasn’t worried about the rising river.

“I’m used to it,” he said. “It’s kind of a way of life. It’s inconvenient but it seems to go up as fast as it goes down.”

The Skykomish River near Gold Bar reached its peak Wednesday morning and is expected to continue to fall.

Volunteers in Sultan filled and stacked hundreds of sandbags on Tuesday to protect against the water.

“An hour is a long time to sandbag, 10 hours is worse,” said Elizabeth Emmons, who coordinates volunteers. “When your back is screaming at you, you’ve got to remember why you’re doing it. …Towns all over the place that deal with this have learned that they have to take care of each other.”

Emmons said volunteers worked ahead of this week’s storm because they were caught off guard by the severity of the flooding on Nov. 17.

“Everybody went plum crazy this time because nobody did anything the last time,” said Loggers Tavern owner Leo Moreno.

Though the water was receding near Sultan on Wednesday afternoon, sandbags remained stacked in front of his business and others along Main Street.

“We’re taking a wait and see approach,” said City Councilman Rocky Walker, Sultan’s volunteer emergency coordinator.

This week’s storm was the third to cause flooding in town this winter.

KJ’s Used Electronics Thrift Store filled with 3-feet of water during the November storm, said Kim Helm, who owns the new business with her fiance Jerrell Neal. The muddy water damaged or destroyed much of their merchandise.

After weeks of cleanup and raising money online, they were getting to reopen Tuesday morning when they got word that another flood was headed their way.

“Your heart just drops and you panic,” Helm said.

Sky Valley Chamber of Commerce Director Debbie Copple said many businesses have been hard hit. Genesis, a new refrigeration and ventilation business, faced rising water on the day it opened earlier in the fall, and twice since, she said.

Sultan homeowners were also hoping for a break.

Sonja Cushing was still drying the electrical box from her jeep, which was filled with water during the November flood, when neighbors started helping each other block water and move belongings to higher ground on Tuesday.

“This year has been the worst,” she said. “We’re just tired of it.”

Like the Skykomish, the main-stem Stillaguamish River was receding Wednesday afternoon near Arlington. Flood warnings for the north and south forks of the Stilly were called off.

Now, there are coastal flood and wind advisories in place for Snohomish County from 7 a.m. Thursday until 1 a.m. Friday.

High tides and low pressure are expected to cause Puget Sound to rise. Winds around 25 miles per hour are likely with gusts up to 45 miles per hour.

The forecast for Thursday calls for rain, tapering into showers by evening. The wet weather is likely to continue through Sunday. Cooler temperatures are expected with highs in the 40s and lows in the 30s.

Amy Nile: 425-339-3192; anile@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @AmyNileReports

Flood resources

National Weather Service weather maps and forecasts: tinyurl.com/23dnazm

Snohomish County flood status and river levels map: gismaps.snoco.org/fws

Snohomish County road closures: tinyurl.com/pekcj92

Flood safety tips: floodsafety.noaa.gov

Snohomish and Island counties school closures: http://tinyurl.com/ngyl9gf.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

A firefighter stands in silence before a panel bearing the names of L. John Regelbrugge and Kris Regelbrugge during the ten-year remembrance of the Oso landslide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Flood of emotions’ as Oso Landslide Memorial opens on 10th anniversary

Friends, family and first responders held a moment of silence at 10:37 a.m. at the new 2-acre memorial off Highway 530.

Julie Petersen poses for a photo with images of her sister Christina Jefferds and Jefferds’ grand daughter Sanoah Violet Huestis next to a memorial for Sanoah at her home on March 20, 2024 in Arlington, Washington. Peterson wears her sister’s favorite color and one of her bangles. (Annie Barker / The Herald)
‘It just all came down’: An oral history of the Oso mudslide

Ten years later, The Daily Herald spoke with dozens of people — first responders, family, survivors — touched by the deadliest slide in U.S. history.

Victims of the Oso mudslide on March 22, 2014. (Courtesy photos)
Remembering the 43 lives lost in the Oso mudslide

The slide wiped out a neighborhood along Highway 530 in 2014. “Even though you feel like you’re alone in your grief, you’re really not.”

Director Lucia Schmit, right, and Deputy Director Dara Salmon inside the Snohomish County Department of Emergency Management on Friday, March 8, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Oso slide changed local emergency response ‘on virtually every level’

“In a decade, we have just really, really advanced,” through hard-earned lessons applied to the pandemic, floods and opioids.

Ron and Gail Thompson at their home on Monday, March 4, 2024 in Oso, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
In shadow of scarred Oso hillside, mudslide’s wounds still feel fresh

Locals reflected on living with grief and finding meaning in the wake of a catastrophe “nothing like you can ever imagine” in 2014.

Rep. Suzan DelBene, left, introduces Xichitl Torres Small, center, Undersecretary for Rural Development with the U.S. Department of Agriculture during a talk at Thomas Family Farms on Monday, April 3, 2023, in Snohomish, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Under new federal program, Washingtonians can file taxes for free

At a press conference Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Suzan DelBene called the Direct File program safe, easy and secure.

Former Snohomish County sheriff’s deputy Jeremie Zeller appears in court for sentencing on multiple counts of misdemeanor theft Wednesday, March 27, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Ex-sheriff’s deputy sentenced to 1 week of jail time for hardware theft

Jeremie Zeller, 47, stole merchandise from Home Depot in south Everett, where he worked overtime as a security guard.

Everett
11 months later, Lake Stevens man charged in fatal Casino Road shooting

Malik Fulson is accused of shooting Joseph Haderlie to death in the parking lot at the Crystal Springs Apartments last April.

T.J. Peters testifies during the murder trial of Alan Dean at the Snohomish County Courthouse on Tuesday, March 26, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Bothell cold case trial now in jury’s hands

In court this week, the ex-boyfriend of Melissa Lee denied any role in her death. The defendant, Alan Dean, didn’t testify.

A speed camera facing west along 220th Street Southwest on Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2023 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
New Washington law will allow traffic cams on more city, county roads

The move, led by a Snohomish County Democrat, comes as roadway deaths in the state have hit historic highs.

Mrs. Hildenbrand runs through a spelling exercise with her first grade class on the classroom’s Boxlight interactive display board funded by a pervious tech levy on Tuesday, March 19, 2024 in Marysville, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Lakewood School District’s new levy pitch: This time, it won’t raise taxes

After two levies failed, the district went back to the drawing board, with one levy that would increase taxes and another that would not.

Alex Hanson looks over sections of the Herald and sets the ink on Wednesday, March 30, 2022 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Black Press, publisher of Everett’s Daily Herald, is sold

The new owners include two Canadian private investment firms and a media company based in the southern United States.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.