Floods recede in Northwest,leaving mess

OLYMPIA,Wash.-Rescue and evacuation work ended and lights flickered back on in thousands of homes and businesses as floodwaters from a deadly wave of storms continued to recede Thursday in the Pacific Northwest.Eight people were killed in the region as a result of the storm; damage is likely to reach into the billions of dollars but remains to be tallied.Interstate 5, closed since Monday about 30 miles south of the Washington capital of Olympia, could reopen as early as Thursday night with one lane of traffic in each direction, state Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond said at a news conference. Officials had earlier said it might take until next week to reopen the West Coast's main north-south route.Gov. Chris Gregoire said flooding hit record levels on the Chehalis, Skokomish and Elwha rivers.Recalling scenes of blown-down trees, Gregoire said, "The visual is nothing like I've ever seen other than my recollection of Mount St. Helens" after the volcano's devastating 1980 eruption.Residents, rescue workers and others involved in the massive cleanup were relieved that drier weather appeared to be sticking around."Mother Nature is still cooperating-it's not dumping gallons of rain," Grays Harbor County emergency spokeswoman Lynn O'Conner said late Wednesday.Amtrak service between Seattle and Vancouver, British Columbia, resumed and service to Portland, Ore., was expected Friday or Saturday, Gregoire said.About 640 people were still in shelters, 33,000 customers lacked power and about 18,900 had no safe drinking water, the governor said.Fourteen water systems were shut down and people served by nine others were under orders to boil water. Some areas requested vaccines, especially for tetanus.Officials learned late Wednesday of an eighth death related to the storm. A person died in a fire that was ignited by a candle in a house without electricity in Pacific County, said Mark Clemens, a spokesman at the state emergency management center.Six people died in Washington, and another two died in Oregon. An elderly man was missing after he was believed to have fallen into a raging creek behind his house in rural Winlock, Wash.Helicopters took flood-stranded residents to safety at the height of the storm. By the time helicopter operations ended Wednesday evening, at least 300 people had been taken to safety in what Gregoire described as Washington state's largest aerial search-and-rescue operation in a decade."Those folks who are literally homeless today still have a spirit in them," the governor said. "They are determined to get back to their homes and get their lives back together again."Gregoire, who flew over the ravaged region for the second time Wednesday, said the damage could ultimately be in the billions of dollars.The governor on Thursday filed a formal request for a White House emergency declaration in two counties, with other counties to be added as damage assessments come in.An emergency declaration would trigger money for temporary lodging, rental assistance, money for home repairs and crisis counseling, and small-business loans.An aide to Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski said that state would also seek a federal disaster declaration.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071206/ap_on_re_us/severe_weather;_ylt=Ajrd_Myga3X8VUEYZfS8HyxI2ocA
As in the days of Noah...