{"id":337992,"date":"2025-12-09T00:51:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T00:51:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/337992\/"},"modified":"2025-12-09T00:51:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T00:51:08","slug":"monster-atmospheric-river-about-to-slam-seattle-area-mass","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/337992\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Monster’ atmospheric river about to slam Seattle area: Mass"},"content":{"rendered":"

A 7,000-mile atmospheric river, among the longest ever recorded, is about to slam Washington state, and University of Washington atmospheric sciences professor Cliff Mass says the forecasts are \u201cserious.\u201d Mass detailed the scale of what is coming, backed by unusually aligned weather models and alarming satellite imagery, on The Jason Rantz Show on Seattle Red 770 AM.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is serious,\u201d Mass said, noting that \u201csome places in the central and southern Cascades are going to get over 12 inches of rain. I mean, a lot of places will get more than eight or nine.\u201d He added that \u201cseveral major rivers like the Snoqualmie and the Cowlitz are going to go into flood stage\u2026 in some places, they may even hit all-time record flood levels.\u201d<\/p>\n

The rainfall maps<\/a> match warnings from NOAA\u2019s Northwest River Forecast Center, which now projects ten rivers reaching major flood stage\u2014up from two just days earlier.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Rain, wind, and flooding<\/p>\n

Mass explained that while Seattle proper may initially feel spared due to a temporary rain shadow, \u201cthe further you go towards the mountains, the worse it\u2019s going to be\u2026 by the time you get over towards Carnation, much more. Keep on going in the mountains, it\u2019ll double or triple.\u201d Wind will accompany the system, with gusts of 30\u201340 mph, but \u201cthe wind is secondary. The primary is the flooding.\u201d<\/p>\n

Forecasts from The Washington Post show this belt of moisture, stretching from the Philippines to the Pacific Northwest, will deliver rainfall in excess of a foot across portions of Washington and Oregon, with near-record river crests likely by Wednesday. The atmospheric river\u2019s peak intensity may reach Category 4 or 5, the top of the scale used to measure such events.<\/p>\n

Mass said the confidence level is unusually high.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re close enough in now that any of the models are going to be very good\u2026 they\u2019re all locked in the same solution, which means heavy precipitation. I mean, it\u2019s going to happen,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n

\u2018The drought is over\u2019<\/p>\n

Mass expects<\/a> pulses of rain through Wednesday morning, with the worst flooding arriving after the heaviest precipitation. But it comes with one upside.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne good thing about all this is that the major reservoirs are to be filled up,\u201d he explained. \u201cThe Yakima reservoir system, which is a little bit below normal now, well, they\u2019re gonna be able to fill those up. So we\u2019re going to be going into the winter with pretty good shape for the reservoirs. All we\u2019ll need now is a little bit of snow, and we\u2019ll be in pretty good shape next year.\u201d<\/p>\n

This event will end any lingering talk of drought, Mass argued.<\/p>\n

\u201cDrought is over. If anybody continues to talk about drought now, they\u2019re deceiving you,\u201d he said, noting that reservoirs will rapidly refill.<\/p>\n

Listen to The Jason Rantz Show on weekday afternoons from 3 p.m. \u2013 7 p.m. on Seattle Red on 770 AM (HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). Subscribe to the podcast here<\/a>. Follow Jason Rantz on X<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, and Facebook<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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