Atmospheric river hits Washington bringing heavy rain and breezy wind

Seattle - Heavy rain and breezy winds are hitting Western Washington and the Cascades this morning as an atmospheric river takes aim at the state.

The heavy rain started this morning in the north sound and has pushed its way south bringing breezy winds as well on the south side of the heaviest rain. Gusts could reach up to 30-40 mph at times today around the Puget Sound area. The firehose of rain will slowly push its way south throughout the day, bringing 1-2" of rain to most of the Puget Sound area. Expect urban flooding and ponding on the roadways for the evening commute. Recently fallen leaves could cover up storm drains lead to more issues on area roads.

Heavy rainfall will hit the coast bringing 1-3" of accumulation. We could see 2-4" of rain accumulation in the north and central Cascades through tonight. That's a lot of rain and it could impact some of our area rivers. One spot is under a Flood Warning this morning. That's the Skokomish River at Potlatch, where moderate flood stage is expected.

After we get through today, things are looking much calmer around the Pacific Northwest. A ridge of high pressure will set up, bringing some sunshine back into the picture by the weekend.

Halloween looks great, with mostly sunny skies and cool & crisp conditions around trick or treating time.

FOX Weather: Streaming 24/7 from America's Weather Center

MORE FROM FOX 13 WEATHER:
DOWNLOAD: FOX 13 Weather and News Apps 
WATCH: Forecast and Radar 
READ: Closures and Delays 
CHECK: Latest Weather Alerts and Live Traffic Map 
INTERACT: Submit your Weather Photo
DAILY BRIEF: Sign Up For Our Newsletter
FOLLOW: Lisa Villegas, Erin Mayovsky, Brian MacMillan and Scott Sistek