Emergency declared as region's rivers crest

Three Puget Sound-area counties and one city were put under a state of emergency Wednesday as relentless rain pushed some rivers over their banks and promised to bring more flooding today.

As of Wednesday night, King, Snohomish and Pierce counties and the city of Snoqualmie were declared in emergency status, a move that frees up resources and speeds efforts to document flood damage.

In King County, historic flood conditions were reported on the Tolt River, and the Snoqualmie River reached flood stage IV. Flooding also was reported in other parts of the county and was expected to worsen overnight Wednesday.

In Sumner, the Puyallup River wasn't expected to crest until about 10 p.m. today. In Thurston County, the Nisqually River was not expected to crest until Friday.

No injuries or serious property damage were reported from the wet weather.

Christine Lange, spokeswoman in the county's emergency-management center, said the emergency declaration "allows us to buy resources faster for residents that need immediate help."

Flood warnings were still in effect Wednesday night for a half-dozen rivers in Western Washington, including the Tolt and Snoqualmie near Carnation and around Snoqualmie Falls.

Others were the Skykomish River near Gold Bar; the Snohomish River near Monroe; and the city of Snohomish in Snohomish County. A flood warning was canceled late Wednesday for the Cedar River in King County.

Red Cross emergency shelters were opened in Preston in King County, and in Graham and Buckley in Pierce County. Shelters also were set up in Snohomish and Whatcom counties.

Forecast: fewer showers

After continuing over the area Wednesday night, showers are expected to diminish today as the heavy rain moves south.

The National Weather Service was forecasting a chance of morning showers today but partly sunny in the Seattle area, with highs in the lower to mid-50s.

"We're drying out. That's the main story," said Weather Service meteorologist Dennis D'Amico. A ridge of high pressure is building over the area, "and that's providing us with the dry weather."

The forecast for tonight is for mostly cloudy skies, with lows in the mid-30s to lower 40s.

"We usually get flooding around this time of year, but this time we're getting a lot of major or near-record flooding," said meteorologist Johnny Burg.

Road closures

Flooding and landslides caused scores of road closures in the region.

The Green River Bridge between Enumclaw and Black Diamond was closed Wednesday after geotechnical experts detected small movements in the soil holding up the bridge. An instrument sent a reading that showed soil movement 40 feet below the bridge, said state transportation department engineer Messay Shiferaw. The bridge could remain closed until Friday.

Wednesday night, nearly two dozen roads in unincorporated east King County remained closed with traffic diverted. All lanes of Highway 203 were blocked from Fall City to Carnation because of water over the roadway. All lanes of Highway 410 were closed at the Greenwater River, east of Enumclaw, for crews to clear a landslide that was about 50 feet long and as high as 20 feet.

Highway 410 was also closed in Sumner near Traffic Avenue.

Seeking higher ground

Wednesday, flood warnings were issued for numerous rivers in a dozen Western Washington counties and evacuations were ordered or urged near the overflowing Carbon, Skykomish, Snoqualmie, Nisqually, Puyallup and Wallace rivers.

Residents in flood-threatened areas made hurried preparations to escape, loading goods in trucks and cars and piling them in high places.

"The point is to get it all up above high water," said Norma VanFleet, looking around her living room at the Colonial Square Apartments on Southeast Park Street east of downtown Snoqualmie.

Sandbags were piled across the front doorway and couches, mattresses, computers and other furnishings were piled on countertops and bookcases to keep them from being damaged.

"With a little luck, it won't come in," VanFleet said.

About 30 people worked through the afternoon, filling sandbags in a parking lot next to a pizza parlor and bowling alley in town.

In downtown Sultan, floodwaters from the Skykomish covered four blocks of Main Street near Highway 2. Sultan High School students were released from classes at about 9 a.m. to help fill sandbags and stack them in front of businesses along Main Street.

A family of four at the east end of town had to be evacuated when water surrounded their mobile home.

Ken Hopkins, deputy chief of Snohomish County Fire District No. 5 in Sultan, said crews brought in a boat from the Gold Bar Fire Department and floated the family and their two dogs to safety.

Another couple, including a man in a wheelchair, had to be rescued when their car was surrounded by water on Ben Howard Road, said Merlin Halverson, District 5 fire chief.

Halverson said the Skykomish River peaked at 19 feet at about 1 p.m., 2 feet less than had been predicted.

"Looks like we got lucky," Halverson said.

Meanwhile, barns at the Evergreen State Fairgrounds in Monroe have been opened for residents needing shelter for their livestock and large animals. Some 63 horses, 10 cows, four zebras, two mules, 50 chickens and a goat had settled in at the fairground Wednesday, according to Snohomish County officials.

In Pierce County, emergency-management crews alerted about 200 residents near the Carbon River to evacuate due to flooding, said Sheri Badger, spokeswoman for the department.

Mount Rainier National Park has closed because of flooding. Heavy rains sent Kautz Creek over its banks and across the Nisqually Road in the park's southwest corner to more than 6 inches.

A small dam has failed at Cosmopolis, Grays Harbor County, flooding several streets and nearby homes with several inches of water. The dam at Mill Creek Park gave way after it was weakened by a falling tree.

There were no injuries, but 12 to 20 homes below the dam ended up with 1 to 2 feet of water, said Mayor Vickie Raines. She said half of the 20-foot-wide, 4-foot-deep partial-concrete dam gave way.

Seattle Times staff reporters Sonia Krishnan, Erik Lacitis and Christine Clarridge and The Associated Press contributed to in this report.

Peyton Whitely: 206-464-2259 or pwhitely@seattletimes.com; Lynn Thompson: 206-464-8305 or lthompson@seattletimes.com; Charles E. Brown: 206-464-2206 or cbrown@seattletimes.com.