Chance of Flooding Decreased, Residents Jubilant but Vigilant

ELLEN M. BANNER / THE SEATTLE TIMES
Sandbags are lined up around the Green River to prepare for potential flooding.


The Army Corps of Engineers has been working hard to make secure adjustments and repairs on the Howard Hanson Dam and good news arrived last Friday...the chances of flooding have been lowered from a 1 in 3 chance to a 1 in 25 chance!

Since January, they've pumped a half a million gallons into the damaged abutment to hold back water during days of heavy rain. This last Thursday, Corps of Engineers Col. Anthony Wright said that it is, indeed, doing it's job. The grout bonded with earthen materials to slow seepage enough that he was able to increase the capacity of the reservoir behind the dam of about 33% to about 50% of its normal capacity.
Therefore, reducing the risk of causing forced flooding in the Auburn valley region to about 1 in 25 with an overall risk of 1 in 33 with the sandbags and other security features to be installed.

Col. Wright maintains, however, that if we again experience Pineapple Express (a series of storms carrying heavy moisture from the subtropics) like we did in January, he would have to cause flooding by releasing water from the dam.

The new numbers are are fantastic improvement, but residents are still staying on guard.

King County Executive Kurt Triplett stated "the new percentage sounds great, but the reality is we had just that type of storm event 10 months ago. I'm definitely going to be sleeping easier..., but we're not out of the woods."

When the dam is fully restored with a concrete wall built within the abutment, there will only be a 1 in 140 chance of flooding. This could be 3 to 5 years away.

New Radars and Gauges to Fight Flooding

More rain gauges and an experimental weather sensor will be installed in the Green River basin to help boost the odds that federal officials can predict which storms might lead to flooding.

These systems, which are already used in California, measure water vapors in the air and wind speed and direction several miles above Earth's surface. Forecasters may be able to use this information to better predict whether impending storms will have enough rainfall to cause flooding within 24 hours in advance.

The new rain sensors are not foolproof, though, Colman said. They are still experimental, and one of the weather service's most difficult tasks, technologically, is gauging how much rain will fall during a given storm.

"But if before we were calling for 2-4 inches of rain and this lets us refine that to say 2-3 inches ... even removing that bit of uncertainty will be helpful," Colman said.


Thank you to Seattle Times.

Flood Insurance: When is it Important?

There are many factors to look at when deciding whether or not to purchase flood insurance but two important things to consider are where you live and the geographic risks for flooding. Common risks for flooding are tropical storms, hurricanes, spring thaw, heavy rains, levees and dams, flash floods, coastal threats and new developments/construction.

Surely, most everyone understands the devastating effects of flooding and the costs; astronomical! So we are providing a great website for you to use while making your decision regarding the purchase of flood insurance. This website can answer many questions for you. We highly recommend that you access it and read through: www.floodsmart.gov.

One thing many people do not realize is their homeowners insurance does not cover most aspects of flooding. For those of you who live in the Kent Valley, WA area we strongly suggest reading the following article: Howard Hanson Dam issues could complicate next rainy season.

Here at SAV-ON, we feel knowledge is power and very important when making life changing decisions! We encourage you to read up and be prepared or ask an agent! You can call us toll-free 1-888-867-2866 or e-mail info@sav-on.com.