Nooksack River flooding likely as storm’s second round targets Whatcom County
A second round of wind and rain from a powerful atmospheric river aimed at Western Washington is sending its most intense rain toward Whatcom County, with flooding forecast for the Nooksack River at Nugents Corner and in Ferndale.
Whatcom County Executive Satal Sidhu issued an emergency proclamation Tuesday afternoon, a bureaucratic step that allows Whatcom County agencies to spend funds that are required for storm response and to provide victim assistance. The proclamation allows county officials to bypass a normal bidding process in some cases.
Moderate to heavy rain was expected from Tuesday night through Wednesday, easing Thursday morning.
A flood watch including Whatcom County is in effect through Friday, the National Weather Service said.
“While this second wave of precipitation will not bring quite as heavy rain rates, this longer duration rainfall will keep rivers elevated across the region, and even potentially causing rivers to peak higher, with significant river flooding expected to continue over the next few days,” the weather service said in its online forecast discussion.
In response, the city Sumas issued a warning through its local alert system.
“Forecasts are showing that the Nooksack River is forecasted to crest Thursday in the minor flood stage. This does not mean that Sumas will see floodwaters,” the alert said.
A Tuesday afternoon briefing estimated that the Whatcom County lowlands could see 2 to 3 inches of rain over two days starting Tuesday night. Bellingham had 0.66 inches of rain Tuesday, for a monthly total of 1.85 inches. Normal December rainfall is 4.33 inches.
Rain was falling in the North Cascades below 5,000 feet, adding to the Nooksack River system Tuesday morning. The snowbase for Heather Meadows at the Mt. Baker Ski Area dropped from 20 inches to 14 inches by Tuesday evening.
New data from the Northwest River Forecast Center shows that the Nooksack River peaked below flood stage Tuesday near Nugents Corner and is expected to peak again Friday at minor flood stage of 146.5 feet, flowing at 30,000 cubic feet per second.
A Tuesday afternoon briefing from the National Weather Service showed minor flooding possible from Nugents Corner to Everson, and from Everson to Sumas via Johnson Creek.
In Ferndale, the river was expected to crest Wednesday just below flood stage of 18 feet. Forecasts show the river cresting Thursday just below major flood stage of 23 feet.
Flooding was closing roads around Whatcom County early Tuesday, including Hannegan Road between the Lynden city limits and Polinder Road.
Public Works Department officials were warning drivers to follow road closure signs and not try to cross standing water.
“We have water over the roadway in a couple of places. Our road sign crew is working hard to get all affected areas signed for conditions. We’re asking folks not to drive around road-closed signs and to slow down and use caution when standing water is present on any road,” Public Works spokeswoman Mandy Fuetz told The Bellingham Herald. “Staff from our River and Flood sector watch team have been out surveying ‘hot spots’ this morning and checking water levels, and will continue to do so. We’ll be monitoring conditions and river gauges as the atmospheric river moves through the area.”
South to southwest winds gusting at 15-25 mph are expected later Tuesday as the second storm arrives. Winds were expected to peak Tuesday night, and breezy conditions were expected into Wednesday.
Temperatures will remain unseasonably warm through the week, because the atmospheric river is pushing an immense amount of moisture from the South Pacific.
Daytime highs in the 50s were expected through Friday.
This story was originally published December 9, 2025 at 10:11 AM.
