Go Back
  • For Business
  • |
  • Warnings
  • Data Suite
  • Newsletters
  • Advertising
  • Superior Accuracy™
High risk of tropical development off US Atlantic coast. Get details Chevron right
Storms to spark on July 4th in parts of the Plains and Southeast. Click here Chevron right

Columbus, OH

82°F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Columbus

Ohio

82°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Columbus, OH Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

For Business

Warnings

Data Suite

Newsletters

Advertising

Superior Accuracy™

Video

Winter Center

AccuWeather Early Hurricane Center Top Stories Trending Today Astronomy Heat Climate Health Recreation In Memoriam Case Studies Blogs & Webinars

News / Weather News

Seattle deluged with more than a month's worth of rain in 3 days

February in Seattle was trending to be well below normal for almost the entire month -- that is until the last three days when the weather in the city lived up to its soggy reputation, and then some.

By Allison Finch, AccuWeather staff writer

Published Mar 1, 2022 3:41 PM EDT | Updated Mar 2, 2022 4:39 PM EDT

Copied

Days of wet weather have overwhelmed some rivers throughout the Northwest, causing flooding.

An extreme atmospheric river unleashed heavy rain and snow over the Pacific Northwest over the last three days of February, bringing significant flooding, avalanche threats, and landslides while also wreaking havoc on roadways.

The deluge shattered daily rainfall records in Seattle, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). The new daily record of 2.97 inches of rain in Seattle on Monday, Feb. 28, surpassed the previous record of 1.46 inches set back in 1972. Monday also took the spot for the third-wettest February day on record and was the city's first 2+ inch total rainfall in February in 26 years, according to the NWS.

The heavy rain to close out February marked an abrupt turnaround as, for most of the month, precipitation amounts in Seattle were trending well below average.

"There has been more rain in the last three days of February in Seattle than there was in the entire month" leading up to that rainy stretch, AccuWeather Director of Forecast Operations Dan DePodwin said. "In fact, the 4.58 inches in the last three days is nearly an inch above the normal for the month," DePodwin added, noting that Seattle, on average, picks up 3.76 inches of rain in February.

"While this month will go down as wetter than normal -- 141% of normal -- it likely will be remembered for being dry due to the majority of days that did not have much precipitation," he said.

For the first 25 days of the month in Portland, Oregon, only 58 hundredths of an inch of rain fell, making for a dry month. Then the city recorded 2.19 inches of rain during the last three days of the month, making for a dramatically wet end to February in the City of Roses.

Just south of Seattle, in Olympia, Washington, 3.12 inches of rain fell, breaking the previous record of 1.69 inches set back in 1972, according to the NWS. West of Olympia, Hoquiam, Washington, broke its 1967 daily rainfall record of 1.33 inches when a total of 2.14 inches of rain fell on Feb. 28.

CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP

"These atmospheric river patterns that set up across the Pacific Ocean happen only several times a year, primarily October to April, so while that much rain is not common when this pattern sets up over an area and persists for a couple of days, heavy rain where it sets up is the norm," said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dave Houk.

Heavy rain that saturated the ground tripped many mudslides across parts of Washington Monday. Valley Regional Fire posted photos on Twitter of a mudslide blocking the entire road just south of Seattle, in Auburn, Washington.

Another mudslide was reported just east of Seattle, in Bellevue, Washington, in the same location that experienced a water main break and mudslide just six weeks prior. Residents who were evacuated during the flood of Jan. 17 had just returned to their homes Friday, Feb. 25, only to be greeted with another mudslide on Monday, according to KIRO 7 TV station in Seattle, Washington.

A nine-mile stretch of State Route 7 was closed in Lewis County, Washington, on Monday due to flooding near Warner's Creek, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation.

Storm closes roadways in Northwest
Twitter

And the precipitation impacts weren't limited to rainfall. Snowfall at higher elevations was significant also.

According to the Northwest Avalanche Center (NWAC), there was still a "considerable" avalanche danger for most areas of Washington's Cascade mountains on Tuesday as well as a "high avalanche danger for the east slopes of the northern region of the Cascades.

"Triggering a slide is likely and will be big enough to bury or kill you. Avoid travel in or below avalanche terrain," said NWAC via Twitter.

Snoqualmie Pass and Stevens Pass, roadways over the Cascade Mountains that connect western Washington and eastern Washington, were closed Monday due to heavy snow and avalanche dangers. Stevens Pass opened Monday afternoon, and Snoqualmie Pass opened around 5 p.m. amid areas of standing water and rain. Traction tires were advised for those traveling through Snoqualmie Pass.

Flood watches, warnings and advisories were in effect through Thursday across parts of Washington. Forecasters warned that recent rainfall and runoff could cause rivers, creeks, streams and other low-lying areas to flood.

AccuWeather forecasts say the dip in the jet stream that fueled this rich flow of moisture will move eastward in the next few days, changing the weather pattern for the Pacific Northwest.

"There can still be periods of lighter rain across western Washington through Wednesday. New [rainfall] totals should be near or less than half an inch, which will not be a major player in triggering any new flooding," Houk said.

More to see:

Shocking video shows big rig plunge off bridge into frigid river
Drought plaguing American West worst in 1,200 years, new study finds
Snowplow driver fired over 'grossly negligent behavior' on highway

For the latest weather news, check back on AccuWeather.com. Watch the AccuWeather Network on DIRECTV, Frontier, Spectrum, fuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios. AccuWeather Now is now available on your preferred streaming platform. 

Report a Typo
Comments that don't add to the conversation may be automatically or manually removed by Facebook or AccuWeather. Profanity, personal attacks, and spam will not be tolerated.
Comments
Hide Comments

Weather News

Weather News

Passenger ferry sinks off Bali killing 5 people, 29 unaccounted for

Jul. 3, 2025
video

Bomb cyclone slams Australia with heavy rain and intense winds

Jul. 2, 2025
Weather News

Alabama teen in ICU after lightning strike hits boat, causing burns an...

Jul. 2, 2025
Show more Show less Chevron down

Topics

AccuWeather Early

Hurricane Center

Top Stories

Trending Today

Astronomy

Heat

Climate

Health

Recreation

In Memoriam

Case Studies

Blogs & Webinars

Top Stories

Weather Forecasts

Storms to spark on July 4th in parts of the Plains and Southeast

6 hours ago

Weather News

Madre Fire grows to 52,000 acres, now California’s largest wildfire of...

1 hour ago

Hurricane

High risk for tropical development off US Atlantic coast

1 hour ago

Travel

Passengers scramble out of plane in St. Louis after report of smoke

12 hours ago

Weather News

Alabama teen struck by lightning while using phone during storm

9 hours ago

More Stories

Featured Stories

Weather News

‘Shark Whisperer’ swims its way into our shark obsession

1 day ago

Weather News

Endangered turtles share this Mexican beach with SpaceX rocket debris

1 day ago

Travel

Fourth of July gas hasn’t been this cheap since 2021

2 days ago

Weather News

What makes fireworks burst with vibrant colors?

1 week ago

Health

There is no safe amount of processed meat to eat, new research shows

13 hours ago

AccuWeather Weather News Seattle deluged with more than a month's worth of rain in 3 days
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
© 2025 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | About Your Privacy Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

...

...

...