How wet was it in Olympia in January? Really wet
February has gotten off to a largely dry start, but it can’t erase the memory of what happened in January.
How wet was the first month of 2020? Really wet, according to the National Weather Service.
More than 15 inches of rain — 15.56 inches to be exact — fell in Olympia in January, making it the third wettest January on record, said Mike McFarland, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Seattle.
It might be hard to believe that January was only the third wettest on record, because at times it felt like it could not rain harder and the rain would never stop.
But in January 2006, 15.86 inches of rain fell here — and in January 1953, 19.84 inches inundated the city, according to National Weather Service data.
Believe it or not, the rainy season got off to a slow start. The area received just 1.74 inches of rain in November, making it the third driest November on record.
In December, though, rainfall totals ramped up quickly. More than 9 inches of rain fell in December, which was nearly 2 inches above normal, McFarland said.
And what can South Sound expect this week? There’s a chance of snow Tuesday morning, but it is expected to turn to rain, which will linger the rest of the week.
Still, the Olympia area will get nothing like what’s expected in north Puget Sound. On Monday, three people were rescued after their vehicles became submerged in floodwaters along the Skykomish River near Monroe.
This story was originally published February 3, 2020 at 5:45 AM.
