LaPush isolated by flooding, SR 112 closed near Clallam Bay

West End rivers flooding

"Water Over Road" – "MP 7.8 Road Closed" reads an emergency warning sign posted by the state Department of Transportation at about 8 a.m. on Sunday at Pettit Oil’s station on the east end of LaPush Road. Flood waters cover the road for over a quarter mile at the bottom of the dip in LaPush Road located just beyond the Three Rivers Store located at the intersection of LaPush Road and Mora Road.

State Route 112 has also been closed in both directions at its intersection with State Route 113, milepost 23.12 since approximately 6 a.m. because of water over the roadway. Motorist can use State Route 113 via Highway 101 to access Clallam Bay, Sekiu and Neah Bay. 

The flooding began overnight on Saturday when a Pineapple Express rain storm blew in across the Pacific from Hawaiian waters over 2000 miles to the west. A U.S. Weather Bureau bulletin issued Sunday morning reported 6 to 10 inches of rain falling in the Olympics overnight with another two to four inches expected today. The heavy rain is expected to taper off later today.

The Weather Service is warning drivers to avoid flooded areas. Driving cars, vans and trucks on flooded roadways is the cause of most flood-related deaths in the state, the warning says.