Due to reduced capacity of the Howard Hanson Dam, there is a higher risk of flooding for residents, businesses and farms located below the dam in the Green River Valley (King County, Washington). Flooding could impact Port of Tacoma customers, tenants and employees who live in Auburn, Kent, Tukwila and Renton.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is currently working to repair the dam to reduce the risk of flooding. Find complete information on the situation at King County's Web site.
City-specific information
The affected cities have established Web sites to share information and provide updates. Renton, Kent and Auburn also participate in the CodeRED emergency notification system, which allows residents and businesses to enroll for e-mail and telephone notifications in the event of an emergency. Tukwila has a separate e-mail-based notification listserv. Find links to all sites below:
Port of Tacoma's role
While the Port of Tacoma is not a lead agency on this issue, we are concerned about its potential impact on our region, customers, tenants and transportation providers. We are working with other agencies to determine how we can best support our customers in the event of a flood.
Direct impacts at the Port
Based on the scenarios we have studied, we do not expect a major direct impact to our Port facilities in the Tideflats area. However, there could be traffic impacts to road and rail. If a situation develops, we will notify customers and tenants through the Port Web site, e-mails and phone calls.
How the Port can help
The Port is working to make land available in the Port area for the temporary storage of trailers, containers, other transportation equipment and product if an incident related to the Howard Hanson Dam created such a need. For more information, contact Derrick Urquhart at (253) 830-5302 or by e-mail.