Flooding hits Moscow hard, Paradise Creek reaches second-highest level ever recorded.
Mike Neelon, Latah County disaster services coordinator, said he will meet with the Latah County Commissioners at 2 p.m. Monday to discuss declaring a disaster to themselves and the state after the recent heavy rains and previous problems this winter.
One previous problem, he said, was the closure of Palouse River Bridge on Rock Creek Road south of Potlatch after a wooden piling was damaged – likely from ice flowing down Palouse River last month.
By state law, a disaster can be declared by a city’s mayor or county commissioners, Neelon said.
Neelon said at this point he supports a Latah County and state disaster declaration, which means the commissioners could use their emergency funds and hope for state financial assistance to repair damage and help mitigate future problems.
Idaho expects at least $138,000 in damages to county infrastructure before it would consider a request for help, Neelon said.
Tyler Palmer, deputy director of operations in the Moscow Public Works Department, said Thursday night’s downpour produced a 10.8-foot measurement of Paradise Creek’s water level, the second-highest recorded water level at the creek, he said. The highest water level was 11.3 feet in the infamous 1996 Palouse-area floods.
“It was a historic flood event,” Palmer said of Thursday night’s rains.
Dan Carscallen, clerk for the North Latah County Highway District, said Moscow Mountain Road between Hart and Frink roads closed around 3 p.m. Friday because of an earlier washout. He said the road will likely be closed through the weekend and repairs will probably be made Monday.
Palmer said the combination of 7 inches of wet, heavy snow on the ground Thursday and the more than anticipated rainfall resulted in a high volume of water in the creek.
“Historically, Paradise Creek would only see flood issues when we had ice,” Palmer said. “Ice dams were a big problem.”
The last two significant high water events in Moscow include a 10-foot measurement in 2012 and the 10.8 feet Thursday night into the early hours of Friday morning. Both resulted not from ice but simply a huge volume of water.
Palmer said the city deployed hundreds of sand bags Thursday night. He said he noticed flooding in areas it had never existed in since 1996.
Bridge and Roosevelt streets south of Third Street were two areas hit hard and lying low on the floodplain.
“Those areas got a lot of sand bags,” Palmer said.
Many sand bags were deployed to several areas on the South Fork of Palouse River to help protect people’s property, Palmer said.
Multiple streets were closed, he said.
Palmer said several areas all over town adjacent to creeks and the South Fork of Palouse River were affected and received sand bags.
The creek has since receded from its historic mark, Palmer said.
“Paradise Creek spikes up really quick,” he said. “It’s the most volatile creek in our region.”
Palmer said it is hard to predict Paradise Creek’s water level in the near future.
“With the rain that we have in the forecast we certainly don’t anticipate reaching 10.8 again,” Palmer said. “That would take very, very heavy rains to spike up that high again.”
Pullman did not appear to be hit as hard as Moscow by the heavy rains.
Pullman Fire Department Chief Mike Heston said the water stayed within its banks.
Heston said Paradise Creek water splashed against the Pine Street Plaza pedestrian bridge downtown Thursday night and Friday morning. The bridge was closed as of Friday morning, he said.
Heston said the South Fork of Palouse River peaked at 7 feet Thursday night into Friday morning and receded to 5.36 feet early Friday afternoon.
Troy Mayor Ken Whitney said 3 to 4 inches of water spilled over onto state Highway 8 near Sunset Mart as drivers enter Troy from Moscow. He said the water cut off the eastbound lane.
“By and large we’re not too unsafe,” Whitney said of flooding in the city. “We’re in pretty good shape actually, except for that one (near) Sunset.”
The Whitman County Sheriff’s Office said Clear Creek Road is closed near Kamiak Butte and it is not sure when it will open. It said the road and culvert sunk and Whitman County Public Works crews are working to repair the area.
The sheriff’s office said it also received a report from a woman that water was up to her house around 10 p.m. Thursday night on the 500 block of state Highway 27.
Via the Moscow-Pullman Daily News