Parts of Northwest Hit by Flooding

South Prairie Creek washes around trees along the banks in South Prairie, Wash. Monday Nov. 6, 2006. Heavy rains are expected to push rivers and streams over the banks in much of Western Washington. (AP Photo/John Froschauer) (John Froschauer - AP)

Oregon Gov. Ted Kulongoski declared an emergency Tuesday in Tillamook County, where about 100 people were evacuated because of rising floodwaters.

The Pineapple Express storm, named for its origin in warm Pacific waters, had dumped from 3 to 15 inches on Oregon by Tuesday, mostly on the coast and the northwestern corner of the state.

The storms were expected to taper off late Tuesday, the National Weather Service said.

Weather-related road closures were common, and affected parts of U.S. Routes 101 and 26. Election officials in Clatsop County arranged to have a dump truck pick up ballots Tuesday night in case of high water on roads.

Three luxury homes in Gleneden Beach were on the brink of crumbling into the Pacific. On Tuesday morning, rock-loaded bulldozers and dump trucks tried to create a break to protect the homes from the high surf.

"I just wonder if they're battling themselves and time," said homeowner Jim Nelson.

West of Mount Hood, 17 homes in the town of Brightwood were evacuated because of the rising Sandy River. Most rivers and streams in the region were under flood watches or warnings.

Rescuers used a boat to pick up seven illegal campers stranded by rising waters on the Sandy River delta near Troutdale, east of Portland. The area is known as a homeless encampment.

More than 100 people were told to leave their homes in the northwest coastal town of Tillamook because of flooding, and all major roads in the area were closed, Undersheriff Terry Huntsman said.

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Associated Press writer Curt Woodward in Olympia, and Anne M. Peterson and Typh Tucker in Portland, Ore., contributed to this report.