About a month after a powerful atmospheric river brought abundant rain to coastal British Columbia, another storm drenched southern parts of the Canadian province and western Washington in the U.S.
About a month after a powerful atmospheric river brought abundant rain to coastal British Columbia, another storm drenched southern parts of the Canadian province and western Washington in the U.S.
The atmospheric river made landfall over British Columbia on October 18, 2024, and moved down the coast on October 19-20. Portions of southern Vancouver Island recorded up to 300 millimeters (12 inches) of rain between October 18 and 20, while the Vancouver metropolitan area on the mainland received up to 150 millimeters (6 inches). According to the Vancouver Sun, the rain overwhelmed the city’s storm drain system, leading to widespread flooding.
Toward the south, the storm also brought rain and wind to portions of western Washington. Up to 150 millimeters of rain was also measured on the Olympic Peninsula. Gusty winds toppled trees and contributed to 14,500 households in the Puget Sound region briefly losing power on October 19. NASA-led research has shown that atmospheric rivers are associated with the most damaging storms in the middle latitudes, especially with regard to the hazardous wind they produce.
Read more at: NASA Earth Observatory
Photo Credit: Wanmei Liang/NASA Earth Observatory
