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Colville Tribes Issue Flood Evacuation Notices As Storms Hit Region

The Okanogan River flows under the downtown Omak Avenue bridge in Omak, Washington. The river is currently above flood stage.
Emily Schwing
/
Northwest News Network
The Okanogan River flows under the downtown Omak Avenue bridge in Omak, Washington. The river is currently above flood stage.

The National Weather Service has issued a flash flood warning in Okanogan County as slow moving storms could bring heavy rain to the region. 
Eleven rivers in north central and eastern Washington state are already near flood stage or higher.

Severe thunderstorms could dump more than a tenth of an inch of rain in Okanogan County and burn scars from severe wildfires here in recent years means all that water could come rushing off hillsides.

The Emergency Services Department for the Confederated Tribes of the Colville has issued evacuation notices for eight homes on the east side of the Okanogan River near Omak.

Currently, no other evacuation notices have been issued, but emergency managers encourage the public to remain prepared.

Elsewhere east of the Cascades, Winthrop could see a quarter inch of rain. The nearby Methow River is nearing flood stage. And in Ferry County, where there’s also been severe flooding, Republic could receive close to half an inch of rain overnight. 



The flash flood watch is in effect through May 25.

Thunderstoms rolled through the Okanogan Valley Wednesday evening. The slow moving storms could worsen flooding in the region.
Credit Emily Schwing / Northwest News Network
/
Northwest News Network
Thunderstoms rolled through the Okanogan Valley Wednesday evening. The slow moving storms could worsen flooding in the region.

Copyright 2018 Northwest News Network

Emily Schwing started stuffing envelopes for KUER FM90 in Salt Lake City, and something that was meant to be a volunteer position turned into a multi-year summer internship. After developing her own show for Carleton Collegeââââ
Emily Schwing
Emily Schwing comes to the Inland Northwest by way of Alaska, where she covered social and environmental issues with an Arctic spin as well as natural resource development, wildlife management and Alaska Native issues for nearly a decade. Her work has been heard on National Public Radio’s programs like “Morning Edition” and “All things Considered.” She has also filed for Public Radio International’s “The World,” American Public Media’s “Marketplace,” and various programs produced by the BBC and the CBC. She has also filed stories for Scientific American, Al Jazeera America and Arctic Deeply.