The Snohomish River continues to rise and the place to watch it all happen was along Klahaya Park on First Street.

About 40 roads throughout Snohomish County were closed during Thursday morning commutes as rivers continued cresting due to heavy rains and flooding.

Snohomish Countys Department of Emergency Management (DEM) urged drivers to remain cautious and patient. Under no circumstances should residents drive through or approach flood waters or flooded roads.

Road closure updates can be found at www.snoco.org and www.wsdot.wa.gov.

Despite dissipating rains, several rivers continued to rise at record levels, furthering concerns that even more roads  including Highway 9 at Snohomish  would eventually be closed.

Early morning projections showed the Snohomish River at Monroe was expected to crest near 4 p.m. today just above 22 feet, while a later crest in Snohomish could reach 32 feet. 

Waters on the Stillaguamish River were to crest at nearly 22 feet at 10 a.m. with a later crest in Stanwood at about 32 feet.

Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon declared a state of emergency related to flooding events Wednesday night.  

To accommodate displaced residents, the American Red Cross opened shelters in Monroe, Arlington and Stanwood. They are located at The Rock Church, 16891 146th St. SE, Monroe, and Arlington Free Methodist Church, 730 E. Highland Dr. and New View Church, 8028 272nd St. NW, Stanwood.

Use of shelters was minimal Thursday morning.  

Road flooding should be reported to the municipality where it occurs. Flooding on county roads can be reported to the Public Works Department at 425-388-7500 or contact.pwrm@snoco.org.

Road closure lists and flood updates can be found at www.snoco.org. Additional flooding issues can be reported to Emergency Management at 425-388-5060.

Contributed by: Snohomish County