Marysville escapes severe flooding which inundates north Snohomish County

MARYSVILLE — For much of the city of Marysville, it was “the flood that wasn’t.”

Yes, flood waters did raise the Allen and Quil Ceda creek levels by as much as three feet, according to estimates from city of Marysville Park Maintenance Manager Mike Robinson.

And yes, walking trails and other areas of both Jennings Park, including the Lions Centennial Pavilion, and Strawberry Fields, including the off-leash dog park, were closed to the public due to the flooding of those creeks.

But both Robinson and city of Marysville Public Works Operations Manager Terry Hawley deemed the city to be “in excellent shape” following a week of flooding throughout north Snohomish County.

“Our ditches are going down and we aren’t getting any flood calls,” Hawley said Jan. 12. “In fact, we sent our Vactor trucks to the city of Stanwood to assist their wastewater treatment plant’s cleanup.”

Hawley explained that 152nd Street was “the only major thoroughfare” closed as a result of the flooding, Jan. 7-8, but he added that it reopened Jan. 9.

“It didn’t really have a big impact on us,” Hawley said. “Our Vactor crews were dedicated full-time to checking storm drains and were kept on alert for troubleshooting, but we kept it all under control. We had some close calls where flood waters came close to the tops of some culverts, but I haven’t heard of any homes getting flooded.”

Hawley and Robinson agreed that the city’s pre-existing plans, coupled with the maintenance and supervision of its work crews, had proven sufficient to weather these storms.

At the same time, Robinson admitted that Jennings Park was closed a second time on Jan. 11, due to rain, before reopening Jan. 12, and noted that, as of press time, Strawberry Fields has yet to reopen. He estimated Strawberry Fields could reopen as soon as Jan. 14 or 15, weather permitting.

Contact Marysville Globe Reporter Kirk Boxleitner at kboxleitner@marysvilleglobe.com or 360-659-1300 Ext. 5052.

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