Nearly 2 dozen people rescued from floodwaters
By KPTV Staff
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LEWIS COUNTY, Washington (KPTV) — Nearly two dozen people were rescued from high waters in Lewis County Friday after heavy rains and snow melt caused severe flooding in the area.
A large stretch of Interstate 5 in Lewis County reopened just before 1 p.m. Friday after being closed for several hours due to floodwaters.
The Washington Department of Transportation shutdown I-5 between milepost 68 to milepost 88 near State Route 12, south of Chehalis, due to the flooding. There was no detour set up because alternate routes were also experiencing flooding issues.
According to Lewis County Emergency Management, 21 people were rescued in Chehalis and Centralia – 10 from a Chehalis apartment building and the rest in Centralia. About 50 people were at a Red Cross shelter set up at Centralia Middle Friday afternoon.
Centralia officials sent out 1,400 voluntary evacuation orders Thursday night. An area nursing home also had to be evacuated, according to The Chronicle.
No injuries, deaths or missing persons have been reported.
FOX 12’s Camila Orti says the combination of heavy rains, saturated grounds and snow melt is what caused the deluge.
A group of Washington National Guard troops is in the area to help with sandbagging and other needs.
FOX 12 Meteorologist Jeff Forgeron says the Chehalis River is continuing to rise and is entering major flood stage. The river is expected to crest around Saturday morning, dropping out of major flood stage around Sunday morning.
Washington State Patrol reported several road closures as of midday Friday. Find the full list here.
Flooding is also causing problems in Northwest Oregon. A section of Highway 47 in rural Columbia County washed away Thursday, forcing a road closure there. And flooding has also been reported in the Forest Grove area.
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