Flood Warning Issued for 3 States As Atmospheric River Soaks US

Three states have been hit with flood warnings as swathes of the U.S. are buffeted by an "atmospheric river" drenching areas with torrential rain or snow.

An atmospheric river is a relatively long, narrow strip of water vapor, that effectively forms "rivers in the sky," according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The current weather system has been causing problems since last week. At the weekend, winter storm warnings were issued for 11 states as the system lashed much of the country with rain or heavy snow in higher areas.

On Tuesday, the misery continued as a string of flood warnings were announced by the National Weather Service (NWS), which raised awareness of the dangers on social media site X, formerly Twitter.

Thousands of people are set to be affected after the NWS instigated flood warnings for areas near a series of rivers across Washington, Oregon, and Florida.

The alerts were issued because a "strong atmospheric river impacting the Pacific Northwest is expected to continue soaking the region with heavy rain through Wednesday," the government agency announced on Tuesday.

Several inches of rain have been forecast in many areas, while there is also likely to be "high snow levels through early Wednesday, which will exacerbate the flooding potential due to snowmelt and increased runoff."

In Washington, several rivers were placed under flood warnings, including Grays River at Covered Bridge near Rosburg affecting Wahkiakum County, which is in the southwest of the state about 15 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean.

That warning remains in place until late on Tuesday night. Buildings near the river were warned they may be flooded, while road closures were likely, the NWS said. The agency warned: "Be especially cautious at night, when it is harder to recognize the dangers of flooding. Motorists should not attempt to drive around barricades or drive through flooded areas. Turn around, don't drown when encountering flooded roads. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles."

Other rivers in Washington hit by flood warnings included Stillaguamish River affecting Snohomish County and the Tolt River above Carnation affecting King County. Both counties form part of the Seattle metropolitan area. In addition, the Skagit River was also issued with a flood warning, which affects Skagit County in the north of the state.

Oregon is also affected, with a flood warning in place until Wednesday morning for Coquille River at Coquille affecting Coos County, which is in the west of the state about 195 miles from Salem.

Florida also had a warning in place until Tuesday night for Sopchoppy River, affecting Wakulla County, part of the Big Bend region in the north of the state. "Homes on stilts in low-lying areas in the city of Sopchoppy will experience flooding on the ground level," the NWS warned. A similar flood warning was also in place to the east for the Aucilla River at Lamont affecting Taylor, Jefferson, and Madison Counties.

The news comes towards the end of a year in which weather headlines have come thick and fast, as extreme events have rocked the country. While some areas, such as Chicago, experienced flooded homes and submerged cars following torrential rain, other parts of the country, such as Texas, suffered from extreme heat. Provisional figures obtained by Newsweek showed there were over 1,700 deaths nationwide in 2022 from heat-related causes—a new record.

Experts fear that climate change will make extreme weather patterns worse, with a series of researchers and scientists telling Newsweek their grim predictions for the future. Many believe that more thunderstorms and floods are likely, along with tornadoes, hurricanes and droughts.