In early February, an atmospheric river aimed at the Pacific Northwest, bringing heavy rain to low and mid-elevation locations in Washington and northern Oregon.

[5] Water rose so fast on the Umatilla River that some Pendleton residents were unable to receive evacuation notices before being forced to flee the flooding.

One family had to seek shelter on the roof of their home and water reached high enough to overtop levees in the downtown area of that city.

Riverfront Park west of Hermiston was under water for the second year in a row and homeless families living in makeshift camps nearby were displaced.

[10][11] Many rivers and streams that drain the Blue Mountains eclipsed records that were set during the 1996 Pacific Northwest floods with other spots falling just short of that benchmark.

[12] North of the border, some fields were flooded and Fraser Health issued a notice to calm concerns about naturally occurring asbestos in Sumas River sediment.

[14] By controlling flow through the Howard Hanson Dam, the Army Corps of Engineers kept the Green River from flooding the Seattle suburb of Kent.

The Oregon Army National Guard was mobilized to rescue residents who were stuck on the slopes of the Blue Mountains above Milton-Freewater due to washed out roads, warning those who stayed behind that it may be several weeks before they would be able to get out otherwise.

[6] Once the waters receded, ODOT opened one lane each direction with a lowered speed limit, but full repairs took some time to complete.