Pend Oreille County

Flood warning remains in effect

SANDPOINT — Lake Pend Oreille is expected to peak later today or early Friday morning, according to the National Weather Service.

The lake is forecasted to peak at 2,064.3 feet and begin to fall, but will remain above flood stage through the middle of the next week. Flood stage on Lake Pend Oreille is 2,063.5 feet.

There were reports Wednesday of flooding on Lakeview Avenue in Bayview, where the lake enveloped recreational vehicle sites, docks and ramps. There was also minor flooding of yards and the parking lot of the Scenic Bay Marina in Bayview.

The basement of the Old Power House in Sandpoint reportedly has also reportedly flooded.

Flood teams from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Seattle District have bolstered Johnson Creek Road near Clark Fork and Dufort Road east of Priest River, which was being scoured by the swollen Pend Oreille River.

The teams have completed work to strengthen the Lightning Creek levee.

Bonner County Commissioners were grateful for the corps assistance and said constituents were amazed with how quickly the agency acted.

“The immediacy of the response was unbelievable to them,” said Commission Chairman Lewis Rich.

Bonner County Emergency Management Director Bob Howard said a close eye is being kept on LeClerc Creek Road near Oldtown. Officials are poised to sandbag the route to ward off roadway flooding.

“The cooler weather helped us out a little bit — even with the rain,” Howard said.

Upstream from Lake Pend Oreille on the Clark Fork River, the Cabinet Gorge dam was reporting a discharge of 112,000 cubic feet per second. The dam reached a maximum discharge of 134,000 cfs in May 1997.

Downstream, the Albeni Falls Dam’s free-flow discharge was measured at 119,000 cfs. The dam discharged 138,000 cfs in June 1997, according to the weather service.

Property owners who are trying to assess their flood risk are reminded to add 3.87 to water elevations reported by the corps and weather service to determine the corresponding elevation on more precise Federal Emergency Management Agency flood maps.

From Our Corner » Blog Archive » Happy 100th, Pend Oreille County!

Washington’s youngest county is celebrating its 100th birthday.

Secretary Reed is shown above with Thurston County Auditor Kim Wyman (left) and Pend Oreille County Auditor Marianne Nichols (right) Wednesday at an event in Newport to mark Pend Oreille’s centennial as a county. Both auditors wore attire from the 1910 era to help celebrate the occasion. The county’s oldest and longest voters were honored at the event.

Located in Washington’s northeastern corner, Pend Oreille officially became a county on June 10, 1911, thanks to a bill (HB 123) passed by the Legislature and signed into law by Gov. Marion E. Hay that March.

Prior to going it alone, Pend Oreille County was part of Stevens County.

“Pend Oreille” is a French term that means, literally translated, “hangs from ear,” reflective of the local tribal tradition of wearing heavy ornamentation on their ears. The term is attributed to early French–Canadian fur trappers who came to the area in the mid-1800s.

Four towns sought to be named county seat – Newport, Cusick, Usk and Ione. Newport , the hub for both river and rail transportation, had the largest population and was closest to Spokane and towns of northern Idaho. After being named temporary county seat, Newport’s position was confirmed in 1912 by popular vote.

A church and community survey of Pend Oreille County, Washington

Pend Oreille County, Washington, Pend Oreille County, Washington, Metaline Falls, Washington, Newport, Washington, Cusick, Washington, Metaline

Social assessment for the Colville National Forest CROP program

Bulletin

A geographic dictionary of Washington