Wednesday, January 7, 2009
News Rainageddon? Precipipocalypse?
Posted by Dan Savage on Wed, Jan 7, 2009 at 5:07 PM
Don't know what to call the sequel to Snowpocalypse 2008, but the wet water falling from the sky is causing all hell to break loose out there. A quick look at the Seattle Times' website reveals that all sorts of rivers that I've never heard of are flooding large parts of the state I've never visited. Too bad there's nothing we can spread on the streets—some sort of magical anti-salt—that would cause the rain to turn into snow when it hit the ground, as snow tends to stay put for a while and melt slowly. I blame the mayor!
Share via
1
How could Seattle have prepared for rain?
What's the point in putting together a plan to deal with heavy rain here in Seattle, when it only rains 368 days out of the year?
What's the point in putting together a plan to deal with heavy rain here in Seattle, when it only rains 368 days out of the year?
2
I just ate two pieces of whole wheat toast, topped with organic peanut butter and sugary raspberry jam.
3
And the snow melting so slooowly helped water thoroughly saturate the deeper soil, so that we have the perfect opportunities for landslides all over!
4
I think sponges on the roads would also be bad for Puget Sound... right?
Isn't there a study from Maine about road sponging??
Isn't there a study from Maine about road sponging??
6
Well, my parents flat roof garage (used for storing stuff and not autos) is leaking and we had to dig out the buckets and other items. Called the contractors who did repairs early last year. I hope they come tomorrow.
God damn Nickels, it's all his fault. He should have been prepared for this rainapocalypse.
God damn Nickels, it's all his fault. He should have been prepared for this rainapocalypse.
7
@5. That's just what I was going to say. Jell-o, the anti-road salt. The fact it's made out of animal hooves shouldn't bother anyone in Seattle.
10
All massive and destructive storms should be named and classified using the Simpson's Class 1-5 KillStorm index.
11
You're right - let's have no emergency responses to anything, and let nature sort us all out. In 6 months this would be a nation of pit bulls and youth pastors.
13
There is such a magical substance: it's called a "storm water system". And its the reason that, isolated instances of storm water system failure aside, Seattle and other big cities don't flood.
A recent addition to the environmentalist pantheon of evil is the "impenetrable surface" which, in the environmentalist religion, causes floods. That doctrine seems a little hard to square with the fact that most flooding is in bumfuck parts of the state that Dan never visits. What those places seem to lack are impenedtrable surfaces and storm drain systems.
A recent addition to the environmentalist pantheon of evil is the "impenetrable surface" which, in the environmentalist religion, causes floods. That doctrine seems a little hard to square with the fact that most flooding is in bumfuck parts of the state that Dan never visits. What those places seem to lack are impenedtrable surfaces and storm drain systems.
16
Spokane had just over 5 feet of snow in December, and another 6 inches (so far) in January. Yesterday the temperatures shot up into the 40's and the whole city is a big slushy mess (snow, slush, water, and ice underneath all of it). The schools weren't closed on Monday because of snow, but they have been closed ever since because of slush.
We are blaming our mayor as well.
We are blaming our mayor as well.
17
It's all Obama's fault. Now if you people had paid attention and voted for Hillary like I told you to, none of this would be happening.
19
Funny thing about the snow... much of the flooding comes from all this rain melting the snow in higher elevations as the snow level goes way up.
20
Meh. I checked the Skyokomish River Flooding Information Site and it shows 63,800 cubic feet per second (thank God we never went metric) at Gold Bar. It was twice that (129,000 c.f.s.) in the Election Day flood in 2006 (the one that took out our neighbor's riverfront cabin). Get out the kayaks!
21
Wetter and longer winters -- I believe the UW global warming scientists have been predicting that for Seattle for awhile now. Good news, some more folks may end up with lake front property.
23
@13:
What all those "bumfuck parts of the state" have in common, besides somewhat fewer square miles of impenetrable surface, and less-than-adequate storm drain systems is that they also for the most part reside in flood planes - yes, even at higher elevations in places like Gold Bar.
And you DO know there's a reason a flood plane is called a flood plane, now don't you?
What all those "bumfuck parts of the state" have in common, besides somewhat fewer square miles of impenetrable surface, and less-than-adequate storm drain systems is that they also for the most part reside in flood planes - yes, even at higher elevations in places like Gold Bar.
And you DO know there's a reason a flood plane is called a flood plane, now don't you?
25
How did I know from early Fall that this was going to be a wet and cold Winter. Oh, and more holes of dripping water have appeared in the garage ceiling. Damn I hate flat roofs.
27
Take a look at the foothills above all those flood plains in google maps btw - they look like a patchwork quilt due to all the clear-cutting...
28
Those patches of clear-cutting, in David Wright's religion - is called progress. Unless it causes his house to flood. Then he comes crying to the government to do something about it, which they do just to shut him up. He then rebuilds in the exact same place, and bitches about the government, until it floods again. Rinse, lather, repeat as needed.
It's a really stupid religion. It suits him.
It's a really stupid religion. It suits him.
30
I think it's awesome that Dan has never heard of the Puyallup, Snoqualmie, and Tolt Rivers. Even though they're like 20 miles from downtown Seattle.
Dan's like the cool nerd kid in school that we all secretly rooted for, who then went on to win the intellectual lottery and get the kind of toys and power we all would give our eyeteeth to possess.
Dan's like the cool nerd kid in school that we all secretly rooted for, who then went on to win the intellectual lottery and get the kind of toys and power we all would give our eyeteeth to possess.
31
@13: "That doctrine seems a little hard to square with the fact that most flooding is in bumfuck parts of the state that Dan never visits"
As 23 already indicated, you don't know shit. "Impenetrable surface" is accurate for cities and worthy of being on the list of ecological evils, but flood plains have been studied for decades. Thanks for opening your yap. Would you like to inform us of urban heat islands next? Or maybe that warm water causes hurricanes?
As 23 already indicated, you don't know shit. "Impenetrable surface" is accurate for cities and worthy of being on the list of ecological evils, but flood plains have been studied for decades. Thanks for opening your yap. Would you like to inform us of urban heat islands next? Or maybe that warm water causes hurricanes?
Most Commented on Slog
-
Life and Death in a Recliner in South Carolina by Dan Savage
-
Pit Bulls! by Dan Savage
-
Becoming a Man by Dan Savage
-
SL Letter of the Day: Hot & Drunk by Dan Savage
-
$2,600,000,000 by Dan Savage
-
All The Best Men Are Taken by Dan Savage
-
I Hate You, Garrison Keillor by Jen Graves
-
Unreal Americans by Dan Savage
-
Precious: Brutal New Classic or African-American Bruno? by David Schmader
-
Meanwhile in Vancouver by Dan Savage
RSS
Facebook
Twitter
Comments (31) RSS