Red Cross Helping after Floodwaters Inundate Western Washington; Threat Continues as More Rain Heads to the Region

Floodwaters cover the ground in western Washington

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Catastrophic flooding is expected to continue across western Washington for the next few days and the American Red Cross is there, working with partners to provide safe shelter, meals, relief supplies and a shoulder to lean on.

Shelters are ready, beds lined up for flood evacuees

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Red Cross disaster volunteers and partners have already opened 11 emergency shelters and are working with state and local officials to identify more shelter sites as needed.

Several cats in a crate at a Red Cross shelter

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Pets are also welcome in the shelters. We do everything we can to accommodate service animals and pets comfortably in our shelters.

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Brenda Huff and Bruce Yarbar visit with Red Cross Northwest Region CEO Megan Dulgar at the Red Cross shelter at Bethany Covenant Church in Mount Vernon, Washington. They are part of a group evacuated from an assisted living facility in Burlington late Wednesday night, when water began flooding from the Skagit River. Photo by Betsy Robertson/American Red Cross

A man and woman in Red Cross vests prepare to serve a meal at a shelter

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Red Cross volunteers Brenda Lawlor, Mount Vernon, and Eric Schroeder, Everett, are both working in the kitchen at Bethany Covenant Church where the Red Cross has opened a shelter to support evacuees following the atmospheric river event that flooded Skagit County. Photo by: Betsy Robertson/American Red Cross

Man in Red Cross vest moves totes carrying shelter supplies

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Red Cross volunteers work to set up a Red Cross shelter at the New Community Church in Maple Valley, Washington, to get ready for people evacuating as rivers continue to rise. Photo by Ty Moore/American Red Cross

December 13, 2025

You can help by making a donation to Red Cross Disaster Relief
Visit redcross.org, call 1- 800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767) or text the word REDCROSS to 90999

The American Red Cross and partners have mobilized across western Washington to bring urgent relief to people affected by this week’s catastrophic flooding.

Numerous communities have been evacuated. Others are cut off after roads and bridges were destroyed. Emergency responders conducted water rescues throughout the area and as many as 18 rivers overflowed their banks, inundating towns and homes with fast-moving floodwater so deep it reached the roofs of homes in some areas.

The danger isn’t over yet. Thousands more could be impacted this coming week as new atmospheric rivers bring several more days of rain to the region, causing the rivers to quickly surge back to dangerous levels.

Many residents are dealing with flooding’s devastation for the second time in about four years. Rivers overflowed their banks in 2021 in some of the same communities that are now under water again.

RED CROSS RESPONSE As the situation continues to evolve, more than 200 Red Cross disaster volunteers are working around the clock with our partners to provide safe shelter, food, emergency relief supplies and more to those in need. Red Cross disaster volunteers are helping now and will continue to support people impacted by this devastating flooding in the days and weeks to come.

The Red Cross has already opened 12 emergency shelters and is working with state and local officials to identify more shelter sites as needed. So far, there have been more than 480 overnight shelter stays and more people are stopping in for basic necessities such as food, the ability to charge their phones, to gather information. We have also provided more than 2,260 meals and snacks.

When it is safe to do so, Red Cross volunteers will help assess the residential damage in affected communities. This work will help us to better understand what support families may need in the coming days and weeks.

If you are being impacted by the flooding, download the free Red Cross Emergency app for real-time alerts, expert advice in English and Spanish, and available disaster shelter and support locations. More information is available here.

FIND A SHELTER We encourage anyone who needs aid to come to a shelter, you don’t have to stay overnight to get help. Find shelter locations on redcross.org, the free Red Cross Emergency app or by calling 1-800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767). You can also follow your local Red Cross or emergency officials on social media, sign up for free local government alerts or monitor local news.

Red Cross shelters are open to everyone in need, regardless of race, ethnicity, age, religion, gender identity, sexual orientation, ability or citizenship status. All disaster assistance is free. We don’t require people to show any kind of identification to enter a shelter — just their name and where they were living before the fires.

If possible, we encourage people who plan to stay in a shelter to bring prescription medications, extra clothing, pillows, blankets, hygiene supplies, other comfort items and important documents.

We do everything we can to accommodate service animals and pets comfortably in our shelters. Sometimes, pets may need to be housed in a different location with support from local partners.

HOW YOU CAN HELP Help people affected by disasters like floods, storms and countless other crises with a Red Cross Disaster Relief donation by visiting redcross.org, calling 1- 800-RED CROSS (800-733-2767) or texting the word REDCROSS to 90999. Your gift enables the Red Cross to prepare for, respond to and help people recover from disasters big and small, whenever and wherever they occur across the country.

USEFUL LINKS Visit these links to find important information on how to find a shelter, how to get ready, and what steps you should follow to help keep you and your loved ones safe.

Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) Thanks to the dedicated commitment of our American Red Cross Annual Disaster Giving Program (ADGP) and Disaster Responder members, the Red Cross stands ready to act at a moment’s notice. Their forward-thinking generosity keeps us prepared for crises of all kinds, ensuring we can be there wherever and whenever we’re needed most.

Mission Leader Members: Amazon; American Airlines; Bank of America; The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints; Costco Wholesale; Dollar General; Lowe's; State Farm

ADGP Leaders: Anheuser-Busch Foundation; Caterpillar Foundation; Chick-fil-A; CMA CGM Foundation; Delta Air Lines; Enterprise Mobility Foundation; FedEx; Honda; Lilly Endowment Inc.; McDonald’s Corporation; Merck; Nationwide Foundation; The Pfizer Foundation; The Starbucks Foundation; Takeda; Truist Foundation; VSP Vision; Walmart and the Walmart Foundation; Wells Fargo Foundation

ADGP Members: ALDI; Altria Group; Aon; Baxter International Foundation; Bread Financial; Capital One; Citi Foundation; The Clorox Company; Danaher Foundation; Darden Foundation; Delta Dental; Edison International Foundation; Energy Transfer/Sunoco Foundation; Ford Philanthropy; Fox Corporation; GE Aerospace Foundation; General Motors; Google.org; Harbor Freight Tools Foundation, LLC; HCA Healthcare; The Home Depot Foundation; The J.M. Smucker Company; Johnson Controls Foundation; ; The Kroger Co. Foundation; Liberty Mutual Insurance; Lockheed Martin Corporation; Marathon Petroleum Corporation; Mastercard; Microsoft; Mondelēz International Foundation; New Balance Foundation; Northrop Grumman Foundation; NTT Data; Paul Davis Restoration; PayPal; PepsiCo Foundation; PetSmart Charities; Southeastern Grocers and the SEG Gives Foundation; Stryker; Suburban Propane; Target; The TJX Companies, Inc.; Toyota; United Airlines; UPS; USAA; U.S. Bank Foundation; Visa Foundation; The Walt Disney Company; The Wawa Foundation; Wesco; Wingstop Restaurants; Zoetis Foundation

Disaster Responder Program Members: 3M; 7-Eleven Cares Foundation; Adobe Foundation; The AES Corporation; Aflac; The Allstate Foundation; American Family Insurance; American Water Charitable Foundation; Ameriprise Financial; Assurant; AvalonBay Communities, Inc.; Avangrid Foundation; Barclays; Bath & Body Works; Build-A-Bear Foundation; Canadian National Railway; CarMax; CDW; Charles Schwab Foundation; Cisco and Cisco Foundation; CNA Insurance; The Coca-Cola Foundation; The Deluxe Foundation; DENSO North America Foundation; DHL Supply Chain; The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation; Dollar Tree; Duke Energy; Elevance Health Foundation; Eli Lilly and Company Foundation; Equitable ; Erie Insurance; Fastenal; Grainger; HP Foundation; International Paper; Invitation Homes; John Deere; Johnson & Johnson Foundation; Keurig Dr Pepper; Kimberly-Clark Corporation; The Kraft Heinz Company Foundation ; L’Oréal; The Labcorp Charitable Foundation; Lenovo ; LKQ; Macy’s, Inc.; Major League Baseball; Martin Marietta; Masco Corporation; McKesson Foundation; MetLife Foundation; Mutual of Omaha Foundation; NextEra Energy, Inc.; Nike Foundation; Norfolk Southern; Northwestern Mutual; Novartis US Foundation; Old Dominion Freight Line; Oxy; Pacific Life Foundation; Prudential; QBE Foundation; Raymond James; RBC Foundation USA; Reckitt; Reynolds American Inc.; RTX; Ryder System, Inc.; Salesforce; Security Finance’s Lending Hand Foundation; ServiceNow; Southwest Airlines; Stanley Black & Decker; Stephens; Tennant Company; Toyota Tsusho America, Inc.; Uber; U-Haul International; Ulta Beauty Charitable Foundation; US Foods; Yum! Brands; Zurich

About the American Red Cross:

The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides comfort to victims of disasters; supplies about 40% of the nation’s blood; teaches skills that save lives; distributes international humanitarian aid; and supports veterans, military members and their families. The Red Cross is a nonprofit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to deliver its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or CruzRojaAmericana.org, or follow us on social media.