While flooding may not reach the historic levels seen last week, a KIRO 7 meteorologist said the overall impacts could actually be worse.

The weather service has issued a flood watch for northwest Oregon and southwest Washington from early Thursday to early Saturday.

The Skagit River is predicted to crest at more than 47 feet near the town of Concrete, north of Seattle, 15 inches above the threshold for a major flooding event.

(THE CONVERSATION) Along the U.S. West Coast, atmospheric rivers are dreaded for the damage they can cause, but they are also essential to the region’s snowpack and water supply, as Qian Cao, a hydrologist at the University of California, San Diego, explains.

As another atmospheric river moves over Washington, it is expected that the area will receive another 5-8 inches of rain. This comes just days after a historic flooding devastated parts of Washington.

Parts of California are bracing for a series of rain and wind events over the next week as back-to-back atmospheric rivers move through the state.

Starting tonight, an atmospheric river takes aim at northwest Oregon. Heavy rain and strong winds are back in the forecast.

Powerful wind gusts knocked out power to more than 500,000 customers across Washington and Oregon early Wednesday, as the latest atmospheric river intensified over the flood-devastated region. The Skagit River forecast indicates it will rise back into major flood stage early Wednesday.