Record rainfall possible as ‘Pineapple Express’ slams WA. Here’s how much rain has fallen
South Puget Sound is experiencing a deluge of heavy rain, primarily due to an atmospheric river — otherwise known as the Pineapple Express — stalling over the region.
From Friday, Dec. 1, through Monday night, the Seattle-Tacoma region has picked up 2.64 inches of rain and is expected to pick up at least another inch by Wednesday, National Weather Service meteorologist Kirby Cook told McClatchy News. Olympia was walloped with nearly 3.8 inches.
The historical average for rainfall during that stretch for SeaTac is 0.76 inches.
“An atmospheric river is a tap of very deep moisture coming from the extratropics,” Cook said. “So that’s why historically it has been named the Pineapple Express; it’s pulling the moist atmosphere from Hawai’i.”
Cook said the atmospheric river had stalled, pointing right at Puget Sound, likening it to a “fire hose.”
“If you imagine kind of a fire hose, when I say it’s sort of stalled, and what I mean is that plume of moisture in that fire hose is kind of pointed at us for the next 24 hours or so,” Cook said.
Cook said no daily rainfall records had been broken yet, but it’s “certainly possible” over the next 24 hours. The rain’s emphasis through Tuesday will be on the southern Cascades, with lower altitudes in Pierce and Thurston counties expected to pick up an additional 1-2 inches, while the higher elevations could see as much as 5 inches of rain.
The Weather Service has issued a flood watch for most of northwest and west central Washington until 4 a.m. on Thursday.
Washington rainfall totals
Here’s how much rain has fallen in some Puget Sound locations between Friday and Monday night, according to data from the National Weather Service.
Bellingham - 2.9 inches
Blaine - 1.53 inches
Bremerton - 2.23 inches
Everett - 1.61 inches
Olympia - 3.77 inches
Port Angeles - 1.54 inches
Renton - 1.55 inches
Seattle - 2.68 inches
Seattle-Tacoma - 2.64 inches
Shelton airport - 5.55 inches
This story was originally published December 5, 2023 at 10:45 AM with the headline "Record rainfall possible as ‘Pineapple Express’ slams WA. Here’s how much rain has fallen."
