Steady rain brings minor flooding to White River

Flood Warning Center monitoring river levels throughout King County as long as high flows persist

For the Reporter

The King County Flood Warning Center opened Friday morning after several hours of heavy rain brought minor flooding to the White River.

As of 11:15 a.m., the White River below Mud Mountain Dam was flowing at 5,080 cubic feet per second (CFS), slightly higher than the Phase 2 flood alert threshold of 5,000 CFS.

At these flows, there is the potential for minor flooding along the White River near Auburn and Pacific, including upstream of the A Street Bridge in Auburn, and near Government Canal and Butte Avenue in Pacific. High flows are also possible along the temporary flood – protection barriers that have been erected along the river through Pacific.

Flood Warning Center employees will monitor stream gauges and weather reports, and will provide updated information on river conditions as necessary. Real-time river level information is available online at kingcounty.gov/flood.

During river flooding events, King County serves as a clearinghouse for information on flood conditions, operating a recorded message center with continuous updates of river gauge readings and flood phases and other related information. Reach the Flood Warning Center at 206-296-8200 or 1-800-945-9263. Interpreter assistance in multiple languages is available.

King County offers everyone free access to KC Flood Alerts, an automated system that allows subscribers to receive customized alerts of potential flooding for any or all of King County’s seven major river systems.

Immediate notifications about pending high water are sent to email, smart phone text or voicemail, providing subscribers with the maximum amount of warning about potential high water.

Find the KC Flood Alerts link at kingcounty.gov/flood. This website is a valuable preparedness resource, with all of the latest information about river levels and road conditions, plus weather reports and other critical links.

Questions or assistance with flooding on smaller streams or urban drainage problems can be called in to 206-477-4811 during business hours, or 206-477-8100 after hours or on weekends.

Problems on County maintained roads can be reported by calling 206-477-8100 or 1-800-KC-ROADS.