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Flood
With over 200 miles of waterfront, flooding is a natural concern in Seattle.
We are surrounded on two sides by water and divided by a river and a canal. Surprisingly,
these major features don't pose the major flood problem. Instead it is several creeks inside the city and a couple
of rivers outside it.
Major Incidents
Year |
Event |
Location |
Impacts |
2006 |
Flash Flood |
City-wide |
A rainstorm of record intensity flooded low-lying areas of city during rush hour. |
2003 |
Creek Flood / Watershed |
Thornton |
Heavy rain in October flooded many basements. Watersheds heavily damaged. |
1996/7 |
Creek Flood |
Thorton |
More basement flooding. Occurred in the same storm that caused many landslides. |
Issues to Note
There have been other flooding incidents, including in 1990, 1986, 1978, but the impacts seems to have limited and localized. Local flooding often accompanies winter storms that cause landslides and wind damage
that tend to eclipse flood damage.
Thornton Creek in Northeast Seattle and Longfellow Creek in West Seattle flood. A detention pond was built to
mitigate damage on Thornton creek and a water quality channel in being built that will complement this work. Flooding
on both creeks has been local events. Flooding on Longfellow Creek is being addressed in the Longfellow Creek Watershed Action Plan.
Regionally, flooding is the most frequent natural hazard in Western Washington. City can be affected when the Puget Sound Lowlands flood. Not
only is the regional transportation network disrupted, but both Seattle City Light and Seattle Public Utilities own and operate facilities located outside the city limits on the
Cedar, Tolt, Skagit River and Pend Oreille Rivers. Flooding can be a concern in these areas during times
of heavy rains and extraordinary snowpack. Flooding in these areas can impact us by damaging facilities in these areas.
On the Web
Green River Flooding
How to Prepare for Floods (PDF) - Information from the City of Seattle, King County and Washington State.
Thornon Creek Water Quality Channel - Explains how the project will work
Longfellow Creek - Explains the restoration project.
Seattle Floodplain Development Ordinance
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