The rain showers Saturday were relentless and heavy. Even with the sun out at times it was pouring. Several downpours with hail and thunder moved through Clark County, slowing traffic on the freeways to a crawl. Even wipers on high speed couldn’t handle it.
Here in Salmon Creek as of 5 p.m. Saturday I had recorded much more than 7 inches of rain so far this month. And we have a couple more days to go, although the next batch of rain appears to be mainly headed into California.
Our friends in Seattle had measured 9.21 inches as of late Saturday afternoon. Consider that their average November rainfall is 6.57 inches — meaning this month is wetter than a typical November. Crazy. If a little more rain falls by midnight Monday, they could end up having March 2014 as the tenth-wettest month on record for Sea-Tac airport. By the way, it is their wettest March on record, as they surpassed the record of 8.40 inches in 1950.
Across the river in Portland they had recorded over 7 inches of rain as of 5 p.m. Saturday, making it their fourth-wettest March. The record is 7.89 inches, set just two years ago.
The main brunt of rain from Friday’s storm was south of Seattle, but the heavy showers behind the front did rotate north, and unfortunately some of these dumped some heavy showers in the Oso area. Not good news for efforts up there.
The upcoming week looks like a mixed bag with periods of showers or rain but nothing as heavy as what we had recently. Quite a bit of sun breaks Monday through Wednesday, it looks like now, and mild. Possible thunderstorms from the next storm heading into California if we get any wrap around moisture. But- April arrives on Tuesday, and it usually holds its share of showers.
We are making a dent in our drought conditions. The Bonneville Power Administration said Friday that the Federal Columbia River system is now average in water flows, and things are looking much better. That is great news. With signs of another possible El Nino developing perhaps California will get much-needed moisture in the future.
Patrick Timm is a local weather specialist. His column appears Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Reach him at http://patricktimm.com.
Patrick Timm is a local weather specialist. His column appears Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays. Reach him at http://patricktimm.com.
