Floods on the Columbia and Sandy Rivers

There is a Flood Warning for the Sandy River (about one mile from here) and a Flood Watch on the Columbia (half a mile). Johnson Creek (four miles away) is over its banks and into homes along its path. A State of Emergency has been declared for 18 counties in Washington including Clark County directly north of here across the river.

At The Hideaway, nothing is coming in at ground level, but some of the torrential rain is collecting in buckets in my dining room. And try getting roofing guys to come out at a time like this! They are backed up and overloaded and not much can be done until the weather abates which may be another day or two. My son climbed on the roof and slathered tar all over, but it is a difficult and not very effective procedure when it is raining like this. The stuff has to adhere before it washes away.

The storm is the Pineapple Express circling in on us from Hawaii on a trajectory that hit the coast in Washington first and is now pounding Northwest Oregon into a mushy muddy pulp. Driving is a mess and many events are cancelled. Roads are closed including Highway 101.

As I have mentioned before, Oregon votes by mail so only those who planned to drop off their ballots to save a stamp (that would be me) need venture forth on this gnarly day. Princess has a vet appointment (cluster those errands) at noon so we will gear up and brave the storm. The Pathfinder rides pretty high and has lethal windshield wipers so we will be okay.

We check the river levels regularly and listen to the TV special alerts. Paying attention to the surrounding areas is key as I learned on Tornado Watch days in Missouri. So hopefully we will get through this with minimal damage (so far only the seat on one of the dining room chairs has been damaged) and dry out eventually.