Photo: Justin Sullivan / Getty Images
The Northwest of the United States and Southwest Canada are still suffering the consequences of the atmospheric rivers of last week , but that region is expected to receive even more rains and gusty winds this weekend and part of the next . According to AccuWeather, areas hardest hit by floods and landslides will see more water fall and aggravate the already critical situation.
Washington is the worst hit state in the country in recent days by the continuous rains in the northwest . The state has received more than 9 inches of rain, when the annual average for the season does not exceed 6 inches . Even Seattle, Portland and Spokane reported 50% more rainfall than normal this week .
“The humidity will continue in western Washington until Monday, which will bring precipitation almost above normal ”, said Paul Pastelok of AccuWeather .
On the Canadian side of the border the situation is even worse than in the United States. Canadian authorities indicated that in British Columbia has fallen more than 175% of the rains expected for this section of the year . The ground is already saturated with so much water, causing several landslides that have taken lives. In addition, the combination of rains and ranchy winds could knock down trees and power lines, leaving thousands without power indefinitely.
The rain will arrive on Saturday morning and will initially affect the Olympic Peninsula with several inches of water. Then bad weather will move and wet Seattle, Portland and Vancouver that same day . For their part, the higher areas of Idaho and Montana will receive some snow from the atmospheric river.
Vancouver Island and the waterfalls of the Northern Canada will receive up to next week. That is why floods and landslides will be the order of the day in areas that are already affected, which would threaten thousands of lives in the worst of the cases .
“Any additional rain may exacerbate the ongoing floods and slow the retreat of the rivers , “AccuWeather meteorologist Ryan Adamson stressed.
Experts warned that rain won’t abate in Washington and British Columbia until Wednesday morning in areas like Seattle and Vancouver, plus some snow in the northern elevations of the Rocky Mountains.
During the first months of the year, the West coast was hit by a severe drought that left the reservoirs at historical critical levels and now the rains do not cease, what has overflowed rivers and flooded roads and some towns in recent weeks .
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