Evacuation notice lifted after Green River levee failure near Tukwila, Washington
The evacuation notice and the Flash Flood Warning were lifted for King County after crews successfully contained the Green River levee, which failed near Tukwila, Washington, on December 15, 2025, triggering flash flooding in the area.
Damage caused by flash flood due to Green River Levee Breach in King County, Washington on December 15, 2025. Credit: Mayor of Kent Dana Ralph
The Green River levee failed near Tukwila at around 12:00 local time (LT) on December 15, triggering flash flooding in the area and prompting a Flash Flood Warning and an evacuation notice for King County.
“In coordination with King County, we have issued a Flash Flood Warning for a levee breach in Tukwila, WA, near Todd Blvd. Water is likely moving north toward I-405. In addition, an evacuation notice is now in effect from King County,” meteorologists at the National Weather Service(NWS) office in Seattle said.
“Conditions are dangerous, and access routes may be lost at any time. Go north or south of the evacuated area away from floodwaters.”
Areas struck by flooding due to the breach included Kent, Renton, and Tukwila. Some streams and drainage systems were also impacted, including the Green River, Duwamish Waterway, and Cedar River.
According to the City of Kent, the area around the breach was predominantly industrial and did not affect any residential neighborhoods. Crews quickly made temporary repairs and contained the breach, allowing the warning to expire early.
Evacuation alerts were lifted for the Orillia area in Tukwila, Renton, and Kent, and the flash flood warning was canceled at 19:30 LT on December 15.
The area, much like the rest of the state, had been battered by heavy rain and flooding over the last two weeks due to major atmospheric rivers, which brought historic floods across Washington. Multiple rivers reached record flood levels, prompting thousands of evacuations in the region.
I am an Assistant Editor and Severe Weather & Science Journalist at The Watchers, specializing in real-time severe weather coverage, geophysical event reporting, and research-driven scientific analysis. You can reach me at rishav(at)watchers(.)news.
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