Flood in Washington, January 17 to 18, 2005

Name: Flood in Washington, January 17 to 18, 2005
Start: 2005-01-17T20:30
End: 2005-01-18T11:44
Location: Washington

January 17 to 18, 2005 · NWS PDT · 1 event in 1 county or zone

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it. Tap one for its entry below.

Tornadoes
Tropical storms and surge
Floods
Wind
Hail
Winter weather
Heat and drought
Cold
Fire, smoke and dust
Marine and coastal
Other

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 1

Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.

What happened

The episode as NWS PDT wrote it up.

Very heavy rain from Snoqualmie Pass to Cle Elum led to deep standing water over portions of interstate 90 with many stalled vehicles. Both eastbound and westbound lanes were closed occasionally from 8:30 PM Jan 17th to 9:05 AM on Jan 18th. Stampede Pass measured 1.59 inches of freezing rain from 3 AM through 5 PM on Jan 17th, followed by 4.75 inches of rain from 5 PM Jan 17th to 11:44 AM on Jan 18th, for a total of 6.34 inches of precipitation.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Pendleton, OR wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Jan 17, 2:30 PM PST, 6 hours earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 17, 2:30 PM PST, 6 hours before

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OREGON
230 PM PST MON JAN 17 2005

.SHORT TERM...TONIGHT THROUGH WEDNESDAY...A MOIST SOUTHWESTERLY FLOW
ALOFT CONTINUES AT THE MOMENT AS MOISTURE IS BEING TRANSPORTED
NORTHEAST FROM NEAR THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS.  WARM AIR IS OVERRIDING
COLD AIR TRAPPED NEAR THE SURFACE ACROSS THE EAST SLOPES OF THE
SOUTHERN WASHINGTON CASCADES...AND THE LOWER COLUMBIA BASIN AND
SURROUNDING VALLEY AND FOOTHILL LOCATIONS.  THIS WILL RESULT IN
FREEZING RAIN IN THESE AREAS OVERNIGHT.  ICE ACCUMULATIONS WILL BE
GREATEST ACROSS THE EAST SLOPES OF THE SOUTHERN WASHINGTON CASCADES
BELOW 3500 FEET...AND ACROSS THE KITTITAS VALLEY WHERE AN ICE STORM
WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT.  CONDITIONS VARY CONSIDERABLY ACROSS THE
EAST SLOPES OF THE SOUTHERN WASHINGTON CASCADES.  SO FAR STAMPEDE
PASS HAS RECEIVED 0.93 INCHES OF PRECIPITATION...ALL OF WHICH HAS
FALLEN AS FREEZING RAIN.  DID RECEIVE A REPORT AS WELL OF 2-3 INCHES
OF SLEET ACCUMULATION 9 MILES NORTHWEST OF ROSLYN.  ANOTHER SPOTTER
NEAR ROSLYN REPORTED .25-.50 INCH ICE ACCUMULATION.  THE SLEET
HOWEVER SHOULD BE VERY LOCALIZED AS THE DEPTH OF THE COLD AIR
BECOMES MORE SHALLOW AS THE NIGHT PROGRESSES.  FREEZING RAIN
ADVISORIES ARE IN EFFECT ELSEWHERE WHERE BELOW FREEZING TEMPERATURES
REMAIN TRAPPED NEAR THE SURFACE.  FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THESE
ADVISORIES PLEASE SEE ADVISORY DETAILS BELOW.

THE OTHER CONCERN WITH THIS SYSTEM ARE HIGH WINDS ACROSS THE GRANDE
RONDE VALLEY.  A TIGHT PRESSURE GRADIENT BETWEEN ONTARIO AND MEACHAM
WILL LEAD TO CONTINUE HIGH WINDS THROUGH THE NIGHT...MAINLY ACROSS
LADD AND PYLES CANYON.  THE PRESSURE GRADIENT IS FORECAST TO
INCREASE BY 3-4 ADDITIONAL MILLIBARS SO WINDS SHOULD RESPOND WITH A
SLIGHT INCREASE AS WELL.  A WIND GUST TO 58 MPH HAS ALREADY BEEN
REPORTED AT UNION JUNCTION.

THE LAST CHALLENGE TONIGHT IS THE DURATION OF FREEZING RAIN IN THE
BLUE MOUNTAIN FOOTHILLS.  CONDON AT 3000 FEET MSL HAS MIXED OUT WITH
A TEMP OF 41 DEGREES.  WESTON ALSO JUST MIXED OUT AS THE
TEMPERATURES WARMED FROM 25 TO 47 DEGREES IN THE LAST HOUR.  THE
MEACHAM-PENDLETON PRESSURE GRADIENT HAS IS NOW 1.8MB BUT PASCO TO
PENDLETON GRADIENT 3.0MB.  AS LONG AS THE PASCO-PENDLETON GRADIENT
EXCEEDS MEACHAM-PENDLETON COLD AIR LIKELY TO REMAIN IN PLACE IN
PENDLETON.  FOR NOW BELIEVE MOST OF THE BLUE MOUNTAIN FOOTHILLS WILL
STAY WITH FREEZING RAIN OVERNIGHT...BUT AREAS AT THE BASE OF THE
BLUE MOUNTAINS WILL SEE MAINLY RAIN OVERNIGHT.  ALL OF THE BLUE
MOUNTAIN FOOTHILLS SHOULD MIX OUT TUESDAY MORNING WITH TEMPERATURES
ABOUT 20 DEGREES WARMER ON TUESDAY WHERE COLD AIR DOES NOT MIX OUT
TODAY.

PRECIPITATION WILL GRADUALLY LIFT NORTH ON TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY AS
AN UPPER LEVEL RIDGE NOSES NORTH OVER THE AREA.

.LONG TERM...WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH MONDAY.  THE FORECAST AREA WILL
BE INFLUENCED BY A W-SW FLOW ALOFT THROUGH THE EXTENDED PERIOD.  A
WEAK SHORTWAVE RIDGE WILL KEEP DRY CONDITIONS OVER MOST OF THE
REGION WITH THE EXCEPTION OF THE EAST SLOPES OF THE CASCADES.
MOISTURE OFF THE PACIFIC WILL SURGE ACROSS WESTERN WA/OR WITH SOME
MOISTURE SPILLING OVER THE CASCADES.  SNOW LEVELS WILL BE HIGH...YET
COLD AIR TRAPPED IN THE VALLEYS WILL RESULT IN PATCHY FREEZING RAIN
EARLY IN THE PERIOD.

&&

.PRELIMINARY POINT TEMPS/POPS...
PENDLETON (AIRPORT) 024 044 036 046 / 070 030 005 005
WALLA WALLA         022 042 034 044 / 070 040 010 005
TRI-CITIES          024 035 032 038 / 070 030 010 005
YAKIMA              022 035 030 038 / 060 030 010 005
HERMISTON           025 041 032 043 / 070 020 005 005
ELLENSBURG          021 033 027 035 / 100 030 020 005
REDMOND             039 054 035 056 / 030 010 005 010
LA GRANDE           037 044 040 045 / 060 050 005 005
JOHN DAY            038 049 038 051 / 040 005 005 005
THE DALLES          029 040 034 042 / 070 040 005 005
&&

.PDT WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES...
OR...FREEZING RAIN ADVISORY ZONES 41-44-45
WA...ICE STORM WARNING ZONES 25-26
  ...FREEZING RAIN ADVISORY ZONES 24-27-28-29.
&&

TI:YGG
FOR ADDITIONAL WEATHER INFORMATION, CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT...
WWW.WEATHER.GOV/PENDLETON
86

Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 17, 3:30 PM PST, 5 hours before

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK...UPDATED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OREGON
330 PM PST MON JAN 17 2005

ORZ041>050-WAZ024>030-181300-
NORTH CENTRAL OREGON-CENTRAL OREGON-LOWER COLUMBIA BASIN (OR)-
FOOTHILLS OF THE BLUE MOUNTAINS (OR)-BLUE MOUNTAINS-JOHN DAY BASIN-
OCHOCO-JOHN DAY HIGHLANDS-GRANDE RONDE VALLEY-WALLOWA COUNTY-
EASTERN COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE (WA)-
EAST SLOPES OF THE SOUTHERN CASCADES-KITTITAS VALLEY-YAKIMA VALLEY-
LOWER COLUMBIA BASIN (WA)-FOOTHILLS OF THE BLUE MOUNTAINS (WA)-
NORTHWEST BLUE MOUNTAINS-
330 PM PST MON JAN 17 2005

THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR CENTRAL AND NORTHEAST OREGON
AS WELL AS SOUTH CENTRAL AND SOUTHEAST WASHINGTON.

.DAY ONE...TONIGHT.

ICE STORM
     EAST SLOPES OF THE SOUTHERN CASCADES, KITTITAS VALLEY

A MOIST...PACIFIC STORM SYSTEM WILL MOVE NORTHEAST ACROSS THE
PACIFIC NORTHWEST TONIGHT. THIS STORM SYSTEM HAS CAUSED SNOW LEVELS
TO RISE TO NEAR 5000 FEET OVER THE WASHINGTON CASCADE EAST SLOPES.
MEANWHILE COLD AIR REMAINS TRAPPED IN THE VALLEYS BELOW 3000 FEET.
AT THE SAME TIME...EASTERLY FLOW WILL KEEP THE AIR IN THESE VALLEYS
FROM WARMING MUCH TONIGHT. PRECIPITATION IN THE VALLEYS WILL BE
MAINLY IN THE FORM OF FREEZING RAIN. PLEASE SEE PRODUCT PDXWSWPDT
WMO HEADER WWUS46 KPDT FOR FURTHER DETAILS.

FREEZING RAIN
     EASTERN COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE (WA), LOWER COLUMBIA BASIN (WA),
     FOOTHILLS OF THE BLUE MOUNTAINS (WA), YAKIMA VALLEY, EASTERN
     COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE (OR), LOWER COLUMBIA BASIN (OR), FOOTHILLS
     OF THE BLUE MOUNTAINS (OR)

AREAS OF FREEZING RAIN WILL CONTINUE THE REMAINDER OF TONIGHT.  ICE
ACCUMULATIONS ARE EXPECTED TO BE LESS THAN 1/4 INCH...BUT WILL BE
ENOUGH TO BREAK SMALL TREE BRANCHES...DOWN POWERLINES...AND MAKE
TRAVEL VERY HAZARDOUS.  BY THE AFTERNOON TUESDAY SURFACE
TEMPERATURES WILL WARM ENOUGH TO HAVE PRECIPITATION FALL MAINLY AS
RAIN.  PLEASE SEE THE LATEST PDXWSWPDT OR WWUS46 KPDT FOR THE
LATEST DETAILS.

STRONG WIND
     GRANDE RONDE VALLEY

WINDS WILL INCREASE AHEAD OF A WEATHER SYSTEM THAT WILL CROSS THE
AREA TONIGHT AND TUESDAY. THE HIGHEST WINDS WILL BE EXPERIENCED
ACROSS THE GRANDE RONDE VALLEY...WHERE SOUTHERLY WINDS WILL GUST TO
60 MPH. A HIGH WIND WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED FOR THE REST OF TODAY
AND TONIGHT FOR THIS AREA. PLEASE SEE PRODUCT PDXNPWPDT WMO HEADER
WWUS76 KPDT FOR FURTHER DETAILS.

.DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN...TUESDAY THROUGH EXTENDED.

FREEZING RAIN TUESDAY
          EAST SLOPES OF THE SOUTHERN CASCADES, KITTITAS VALLEY,
          FOOTHILLS OF THE BLUE MOUNTAINS (WA)

THE STORM TRACK WILL BEGIN TO SHIFT NORTH TUESDAY...BUT SOME
LINGERING MOISTURE FALLING INTO TRAPPED COLD AIR COULD RESULT IN
MORE LIGHT FREEZING RAIN. THE FREEZING PRECIPITATION SHOULD BE
MAINLY DURING THE MORNING.

FOR THE REMAINDER OF THE WEEK...THE UPPER RIDGE SHOULD CONTINUE TO
STRENGTHEN KEEPING THE STORM TRACK NORTH AND WEST OF SOUTHEAST
WASHINGTON AND NORTHEAST OREGON. SOME LIGHT SNOW OR RAIN MAY OCCUR
AT TIMES ALONG EAST SLOPES OF THE CASCADES...BUT WITH ONLY MINOR
ACCUMULATIONS. TEMPERATURES WILL ALSO MODERATE THROUGH THE PERIOD.

.SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT...

SPOTTER ACTIVATION WILL BE LIKELY.

WEATHER SPOTTERS ARE ENCOURAGED TO REPORT SIGNIFICANT WEATHER
CONDITIONS ACCORDING TO STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES.

PROTOTYPE GRAPHICAL FORECASTS OF WEATHER HAZARDS OUT TO SEVEN DAYS
ARE DISPLAYED ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB AT:

WWW.WRH.NOAA.GOV/PENDLETON/FORECAST/HWOGRAPHICS/HWOGRAPHICS.PHP

ALL LETTERS IN THE ABOVE URL ARE LOWER CASE...EXCEPT THE G IN
HWOGRAPHICS AND THE G IN HWOGRAPHICS.PHP.

In the hours before

Local storm report, Jan 17, 3:18 PM PST, 5 hours 12 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT...CORRECTED
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
318 PM PST MON JAN 17 2005

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0825 AM     FREEZING RAIN    N ELLENSBURG            47.00N 120.54W
01/17/2005  0.25 INCH        KITTITAS           WA   TRAINED SPOTTER

            1/4 INCH OF ICE ACCUMULATION.

1045 AM     NON-TSTM WND GST UNION                   45.21N 117.87W
01/17/2005  58 MPH           UNION              OR   MESONET

            A PEAK WIND GUST OF 58 MPH FROM THE SOUTH OCCURRED AT
            UNION JCT.

1245 PM     HEAVY SLEET      9 NW ROSLYN             47.32N 121.25W
01/17/2005  2.00 INCH        KITTITAS           WA   TRAINED SPOTTER

            2 TO 3 INCHES OF SLEET SINCE SUNDAY EVENING. ELEVATION
            2480 FEET.

1250 PM     ICE STORM        3 WSW ROSLYN            47.23N 121.17W
01/17/2005                   KITTITAS           WA   TRAINED SPOTTER

            ONE QUARTER TO ONE HALF INCH OF ICE ACCUMULATION SINCE
            SUNDAY NIGHT. ELEVATION 2175 FEET.

0314 PM     ICE STORM        53 NW ZILLAH            46.94N 121.07W
01/17/2005                   YAKIMA             WA   TRAINED SPOTTER

            ONE QUARTER INCH OF ICE ACCUMULATION IN CLIFFDELL.
            ELEVATION 2450 FEET.

&&

JAS

Local storm report, Jan 17, 4:54 PM PST, 3 hours 36 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
454 PM PST MON JAN 17 2005

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0440 PM     ICE STORM        9 NW ROSLYN             47.32N 121.25W
01/17/2005                   KITTITAS           WA   TRAINED SPOTTER

            OVER 1/4 INCH ICE ACCUMULATION

&&

MRC

Local storm report, Jan 17, 6:05 PM PST, 2 hours 25 minutes before

PRELIMINARY LOCAL STORM REPORT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PENDLETON OR
605 PM PST MON JAN 17 2005

..TIME...   ...EVENT...      ...CITY LOCATION...     ...LAT.LON...
..DATE...   ....MAG....      ..COUNTY LOCATION..ST.. ...SOURCE....
            ..REMARKS..

0230 PM     FREEZING RAIN    20 W WHITE SALMON       45.73N 121.90W
01/17/2005  0.50 INCH        SKAMANIA           WA   PUBLIC

            IN STEVENSON WASHINGTON...HALF INCH OF ICE FROM FREEZING
            RAIN...CAUSED 3 INCH DIAMETER BRANCHES OF DOUGLAS FIR TO
            BREAK OFF...ALSO CAUSED TWO BRIEF POWER OUTAGES.

&&

AMA

The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

1 flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Flood, W Kittitas/W Yakima/W Klickitat T X Sw

When: January 17, 8:30 PM PST to January 18, 11:44 AM PST
Where: W Kittitas/W Yakima/W Klickitat T X Sw forecast zone
Reported by: DEPT OF HIGHWAYS
Coordinates: 47.383, -119.483

What these are

Flood: Flooding that develops more slowly than a flash flood: rivers leaving their banks, or water standing over land for an extended time.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Washington in 2005 Every state in 2005 This day in weather history Warnings in Washington, January 2005

Sources

NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5434179.