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397:(ODOT) to close it for a time with some motorists abandoning their vehicles on the road. Once the waters receded, ODOT opened one lane each direction with a lowered speed limit, but full repairs took some time to complete. Six other state highways were closed in northeast Oregon, and it is estimated that the cost of damage in that region was $ 48 million.
141:, bringing heavy rain to low and mid-elevation locations in Washington and northern Oregon. Most atmospheric rivers that impact the Pacific Northwest are typically oriented from southwest to northeast, but this one was unusual in that it was oriented west to east. Because of the orientation of mountain ranges such as the
385:
After a bridge across Mill Creek washed out southeast of Walla Walla, the volunteer fire department attempted to rescue residents using a converted military vehicle. This got stuck and extra equipment had to be called in to get it out. As a precautionary measure the city of Walla Walla closed some
186:
residents were unable to receive evacuation notices before being forced to flee the flooding. One family had to seek shelter on the roof of their home and water reached high enough to overtop levees in the downtown area of that city. The body of a
Pendleton-area woman who is believed to have been
219:, was protected from flooding on Mill Creek which was placed in a deep channel through the city following flooding in 1931. On either side of the city, the creek overflowed its banks to wash out roads, inundate fields, and damage buildings. In an effort to manage flows in the creek the
145:, the west to east trajectory is more efficient at producing precipitation on the windward side of the ranges. This, combined with the duration of the rainfall on near-average snowpack, led to widespread flooding that was record breaking on some rivers.
381:
was mobilized to rescue residents who were stuck on the slopes of the Blue
Mountains above Milton-Freewater due to washed out roads, warning those who stayed behind that it may be several weeks before they would be able to get out otherwise.
152:
issued flood warnings for multiple rivers. In parts of the
Washington Cascades, over 15 inches (380 mm) inches of water-equivalent precipitation was observed, with over 10 inches (250 mm) on the west slopes of the Blue Mountains.
117:, Canada also flooded. The flooding was primarily caused by heavy rain falling on mountain snow and represents the worst flood on record for some of the affected rivers. Large rivers in the region, such as the
223:
released water from
Bennington Lake, a reservoir east of Walla Walla, into nearby Russell Creek. The reservoir was not at risk of being overtopped, but it took about 40 days to get it back to normal levels.
203:
was under water for the second year in a row and homeless families living in makeshift camps nearby were displaced. A mudslide 26 miles (42 km) east of
Pendleton caused a closure on a railroad owned by
840:
231:
was evacuated when the Walla Walla River overtopped a levee protecting that city. Upstream, the river and some of its tributaries rendered some roads in and near the Blue
Mountains impassable.
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1139:
294:. Sumas residents were asked by authorities to delay pumping water from their homes because of high water in parts of town. North of the border, some fields were flooded and
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had taken damage and would need to be stabilized. Strong winds in that area also caused many to lose power. By controlling flow through the
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with other spots falling just short of that benchmark. By contrast, rivers draining the east slopes of the
Cascades, such as the
494:
733:
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only experienced minor flooding because of the orientation of the 2020 atmospheric river and lack of snow on the valley floor.
386:
bridges across Mill Creek, but the artificial channel did not overflow and the bridges reopened once the water level dropped.
259:
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393:, the only east–west Interstate in Oregon. Near Echo, the Umatilla River completely covered the road, forcing the
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911:
876:
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Counties. It was noted that the cost of road repairs in
Washington alone was expected to reach $ 3 million. The
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leading to a 200 miles (320 km) stretch of the freeway being closed for several days. Around 50 homes in
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Many rivers and streams that drain the Blue
Mountains eclipsed records that were set during the
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issued a notice to calm concerns about naturally occurring asbestos in Sumas River sediment.
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proclaimed a state of emergency for 20 counties throughout the state while Oregon governor
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attempting to evacuate was found a few days later. Downstream, the
Umatilla River overran
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94:
1040:
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350:
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814:"USA - Storms and Floods Prompt Emergency Declarations in Washington and Oregon"
518:"Amazing Murk, Very Wet on the Cascade Slopes, and an Unusual Atmospheric River"
279:
122:
362:
358:
658:
309:, but many roads near town were covered by water. As water receded on the
841:"Northeastern Oregon sees $ 22 million in reimbersements for 2020 floods"
708:"More rain in the Whatcom forecast, adding to Nooksack River flood woes"
547:"Widespread flooding in Eastern Oregon leads to Interstate 84 closures"
326:
495:"Recent heavy rains linked to river flooding across Washington state"
106:
60:
290:
and the border crossing it terminates at, connecting that city with
243:
because of flooding from the Walla Walla River, as well as between
657:
Ingalls, Mark; Zagrodnik, Joe; Oswald, Craig (February 13, 2020).
416:"The Record Breaking Blue Mountain Flooding of February 6-8, 2020"
340:
160:
97:. The main impacts were experienced in the northwest quarter of
865:
626:"Officials report water levels hit historic high in the Valley"
861:
785:"Hanson Dam protecting Green River Valley, Kent from flooding"
682:"Dayton mayor shares information about aftermath of the flood"
274:
Many rivers draining the west slopes of the Cascades north of
215:
watershed was also extensive. The largest city in the area,
389:
Among the numerous roads that were damaged by flooding was
734:"'No public health risk' after Abbotsford river floods"
567:
McDowell, Jade; Pollard, Jessica (February 11, 2020).
255:
flowed out of its banks and damaged the levee system.
195:
took damage along with some homes and businesses near
1092:
1066:
1028:
930:
897:
75:
52:
44:
446:"I-84 reopens in NE Oregon; flooding turns deadly"
305:did not reach high enough to impact businesses in
595:"Flooding spreads across eastern Umatilla County"
877:
8:
808:
806:
313:, it was discovered that a levee protecting
19:
1140:2020 natural disasters in the United States
148:Before the system impacted the region, the
884:
870:
862:
282:overtopped levees to inundate the city of
169:in Walla Walla County damaged by flooding.
101:and along rivers and streams draining the
25:
18:
1170:Natural disasters in Washington (state)
706:Mittendorf, Robert (February 3, 2020).
488:
486:
406:
321:, the Army Corps of Engineers kept the
270:Northwest Washington and Lower Mainland
652:
650:
648:
646:
440:
438:
436:
105:in southeast Washington and northeast
1160:Natural disasters in British Columbia
758:Cauvel, Kimberly (February 2, 2020).
680:Smith, Michelle (February 20, 2020).
624:Maynes, Jedidiah (February 9, 2020).
593:Pollard, Jessica (February 6, 2022).
545:Flaccus, Gillian (February 7, 2020).
7:
732:Luymes, Glenda (February 12, 2020).
619:
617:
615:
540:
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493:Charles, Alfred (February 2, 2020).
467:Collentine, Sam (January 15, 2020).
395:Oregon Department of Transportation
14:
839:Wittwer, Alex (January 5, 2022).
414:Mass, Cliff (February 10, 2020).
165:A bridge over Mill Creek west of
1175:History of the Pacific Northwest
1145:2020 floods in the United States
516:Mass, Cliff (February 6, 2020).
345:Vehicles stuck in floodwater on
89:were a series of floods in the
469:"January 2020 Snowpack Update"
1:
661:. Washington State University
260:1996 Pacific Northwest floods
87:2020 Pacific Northwest floods
20:2020 Pacific Northwest floods
1180:2020 floods in North America
448:. KTVZ-TV. February 10, 2020
292:Abbotsford, British Columbia
1165:Natural disasters in Oregon
1155:Floods in the United States
278:flooded. In the north, the
16:Floods in the United States
1196:
630:Walla Walla Union-Bulletin
379:Oregon Army National Guard
199:. Riverfront Park west of
178:Water rose so fast on the
1108:
286:, forcing the closure of
125:were largely unaffected.
24:
760:"Major flooding averted"
659:"February 2020 Flooding"
150:National Weather Service
109:. Small portions of the
522:Cliff Mass Weather Blog
420:Cliff Mass Weather Blog
221:Army Corps of Engineers
129:Meteorological synopsis
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301:Major flooding on the
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133:In early February, an
712:The Bellingham Herald
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164:
764:Skagit Valley Herald
357:Washington governor
569:"The Flood of 2020"
235:was closed between
37:Touchet, Washington
21:
1082:Southeast Kentucky
820:. February 8, 2020
791:. February 4, 2020
355:
325:from flooding the
174:Blue Mountain area
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1077:Pacific Northwest
365:did the same for
319:Howard Hanson Dam
213:Walla Walla River
139:Pacific Northwest
135:atmospheric river
91:Pacific Northwest
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33:Walla Walla River
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103:Blue Mountains
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288:State Route 9
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276:Interstate 90
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253:Touchet River
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189:Interstate 84
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167:College Place
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143:Cascade Range
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137:aimed at the
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95:United States
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48:February 2020
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38:
34:
28:
23:
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1076:
1041:Storm Gloria
1036:Storm Dennis
848:. Retrieved
845:The Observer
844:
834:
822:. Retrieved
817:
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767:. Retrieved
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741:. Retrieved
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633:. Retrieved
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602:. Retrieved
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525:. Retrieved
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473:. Retrieved
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450:. Retrieved
423:. Retrieved
419:
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351:Echo, Oregon
311:Skagit River
300:
273:
257:
226:
210:
177:
147:
132:
86:
84:
1119:2021 floods
1113:2019 floods
945:Afghanistan
917:Congo River
905:East Africa
892:2020 floods
471:. Open Snow
323:Green River
280:Sumas River
217:Walla Walla
1134:Categories
979:Indonesia
938:South Asia
401:References
363:Kate Brown
359:Jay Inslee
329:suburb of
315:Burlington
251:where the
182:that some
99:Washington
57:Washington
963:Hyderabad
850:March 18,
824:March 18,
818:Floodlist
795:March 18,
769:March 18,
743:March 18,
717:March 17,
691:March 18,
665:March 18,
635:March 18,
604:March 18,
578:March 18,
552:March 18,
527:March 17,
501:March 18,
497:. KOMO-TV
475:March 17,
452:March 18,
425:March 17,
307:Snohomish
201:Hermiston
197:Stanfield
184:Pendleton
1047:Croatia
1009:Vietnam
973:Vidarbha
367:Umatilla
337:Response
245:Prescott
227:Much of
119:Columbia
71:, Canada
53:Location
1122: →
1110:←
983:Jakarta
375:Wallowa
327:Seattle
241:Touchet
237:Wallula
63:in the
1100:Brazil
1051:Zagreb
1029:Europe
993:Kyushu
989:Japan
968:Kerala
954:India
898:Africa
373:, and
264:Yakima
249:Dayton
107:Oregon
76:Deaths
61:Oregon
1020:Yemen
1005:Nepal
1000:Korea
958:Assam
950:China
922:Sudan
371:Union
349:near
284:Sumas
233:US 12
123:Snake
35:near
931:Asia
852:2022
826:2022
797:2022
771:2022
745:2022
719:2022
693:2022
667:2022
637:2022
606:2022
580:2022
554:2022
529:2022
503:2022
477:2022
454:2022
427:2022
331:Kent
247:and
239:and
193:Echo
121:and
85:The
59:and
45:Date
113:in
1136::
1116:·
843:.
816:.
805:^
787:.
762:.
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710:.
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645:^
628:.
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