(CNN) -- Historic floods in western Washington have pushed thousands to evacuate, caused the closure of a major interstate and threatened to crest every river and stream in the area, according to authorities. Rescue boats are sent out in Pierce County, south of Seattle, on Wednesday. <http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/weather/01/08/washington.floods/index.html#> As much as 13 inches of rain had fallen in some areas in western Washington on Wednesday, the National Weather Service office in Seattle, Washington, said. The situation has been exacerbated by unseasonably high temperatures that have caused a large amount of snow to melt. "We have had a lot of heavy rain fall, and with the melted snow we have, rivers have breached the all-time record high," said Danny Mercer, a forecaster with the Seattle office of the National Weather Service. "The rain will not stop until [Thursday] morning, so the flooding is going to continue for the next couple days."
-- Posted By Breaking News to Break News at 1/08/2009 01:48:00 PM
