Levee fails sparking emergency evacuations in Seattle after a week of torrential rain

Tens of thousands of people had already been told to evacuate after floods prompted scores of rescues throughout western Washington state

Justus Top, 13, rides a jet ski through his family's front yard Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025 in Sedro-Wooley, Wash. Water from the nearby Skagit River flooded the garage but spared the house, coming within a foot of the structure (Jennifer Buchanan/The Seattle Times via AP)

A levee has failed, sparking urgent evacuations in three south Seattle suburbs.

The emergency comes after a week of heavy rains that triggered a state of emergency in Washington state.

The evacuation order from King County in Washington state covered homes and businesses east of the Green River in parts of Kent, Auburn and Tukwila.

The National Weather Service, meanwhile, issued a flash flood warning covering nearly 47,000 people.

“Conditions are dangerous and access routes may be lost at any time,” the weather service said in a post on X.

Carter Johnson, 16, uses a boat to transport his five-year-old brother, Milo, and two neighbors past a flooded house in what was their front yard Saturday, Dec. 13, 2025, near Clear Lake, Wash. (Jennifer Buchanan/The Seattle Times via AP)

The levee breach followed days of heavy rain and flooding that inundated communities, forced the evacuations of tens of thousands of people and prompted scores of rescues throughout western Washington state.