Thousands Evacuated as Flood Waters Whoosh Through Oregon

Thousands of people were evacuated and a child apparently drowned as Oregon rivers and streams gushed over their banks Wednesday in the state’s worst flooding in more than 30 years.

The Willamette River, the major waterway that moves up the Willamette Valley through the state’s population centers, was swollen to near flood stage and was predicted to crest far above its banks by early Friday, posing a threat from Eugene to Portland.

“It does not look good at this point,” said Tom Worden, spokesman for the state Emergency Management office. “It looks like it could approach the 1964 flood on the Willamette River anyway.”

Torrential rain began falling Monday, melting several inches of snow and ice that had encased the region.

Eugene reported 5.31 inches of rain in the last 24 hours. Other readings included 4.97 inches at Florence and 4.70 inches at Seaside.

In Portland, more than 5 inches of rain had fallen since Monday and another inch was expected before the rain finally stopped. The average rainfall for the month of February is 3.93 inches.

The body of a 9-year-old girl was found near her creek-side home east of the farming town of Scio after she did not return from a trip to the mailbox. The Linn County sheriff’s office did not immediately release her identity but said she apparently drowned.

Almost all of the town of Scio, population 630, was flooded. Canoeists could be seen paddling down Main Street.

About 3,000 people were told to leave their homes near the North Santiam River below Detroit Dam. The Detroit Reservoir rose nearly 2 feet per hour, prompting concerns that water would have to be released today into a river already running above flood stage.

The coastal town of Tillamook was cut off by flood waters over all highways that enter the city. Much of the downtown area was flooded by 6 to 7 feet of water.

U.S. Coast Guard and county rescue boats were ferrying people through town, sometimes catching propellers atop the roofs of submerged cars.

In the Mohawk Valley east of Eugene, rescuers used boats and helicopters to evacuate stranded residents.

A Coast Guard helicopter hoisted three people from the roof of an old school bus, where they had been camping near North Bend, and eight people from a house near Salem.

Interstate 84 was closed near Cascade Locks Wednesday night in the Columbia Gorge by a mudslide that trapped a car, state police said.

Interstate 5, the main north-south route through the state, was closed by high water and a mudslide in two places between Albany and Salem. High water closed hundreds of other roads.