June 2008 Midwest floods

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

**June 2008 Midwest Flood**
Map of river flooding as of June 10th, 2008.
Duration	June 7 - Ongoing
Damages	TBD
Fatalities	3 Deaths
Areas affected	Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Wisconsin

On June 4, 2008 severe thunderstorms began to impact the upper Midwestern United States. Tornadoes, hail, severe lighting, and rain led to major damage to much of the region. Flash flooding led to the evacuation on thousands of home in low lying areas. The situation worsened as rain continued on June 5.

Central and southwestern Indiana was particularly hard hit, damage costs are expected to make the flooding the costliest disaster in the history of the state.

1 Illinois
2 Indiana
3 Iowa
4 Michigan
5 Missouri
6 Wisconsin
7 See also
8 References
9 External links

[edit] Illinois

**June 2008 Illinois Flood**
Duration	June 7 - Ongoing
Damages	TBD
Fatalities	0 Deaths
Areas affected

At least two tornadoes touched down on the south side of Chicago cause extensive damage to several city blocks.

On June 10 several levees broke in northeastern Illinois flooding around 75 square miles of farmland.

[edit] Indiana

**June 2008 Indiana Flood**
House on the Southern Johnson County, Indiana line underwater due to flooding
Duration	June 7 - Ongoing
Damages	TBD
Fatalities	3 Deaths
Areas affected

Starting on June 4, 2008, rain soaked parts of south-central Indiana leading to initial floods in and around Bloomington. Additional rain on June 7 brought the worst of the flooding to larger portions of south-central and western Indiana . The highest recorded rainfall amount was in the town of Edinburgh, which saw 10.94 inches of rain in just seven hours. Paragon saw 10 inches of rain in just a few hours, leaving 90% of the town underwater^[1]. National Weather Service hydrologist Al Shipe says some parts of the state could see flooding that approaches record levels set in 1913^[2].

On June 9 President George W. Bush declared 29 counties in central Indiana a major disaster area opening up the region to receive federal aid and FEMA assistance.^[3]

[edit] Impact

Many low lying areas of central and northern Indiana were evacuated due to the rapid rise of the waters. Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels declared a state of emergency in 23 counties^[4] and called in the United States Coast Guard to assist in evacuations and rescues. The Coast Guard responded by sending two helicopters to the state along with boats and personnel. The Indiana National Guard was called out to assist in evacuation and direct traffic and enforce road blocks on the many flooded roads. Some areas of southern Indianapolis, where the White River was several feet past flood stage, were evacuated including a hospital with one hundred patients and doctors. The Coast Guard were continuing to rescue trapped citizens on June 8. In Franklin, Indiana water rose as high as the first floor of Johnson Memorial Hospital.^[5] Doctors and patients were also evacuated from Columbus Regional Hospital in Columbus, Indiana. The hospital closed for an extended period of time due to power outages and generator failures. All patients were evacuated and moved to nearby hospitals. One hundred and fifty people were evacuated from a nursing home in Morgan County.

The dam holding Prince's Lake failed on June 7 threatening the community of Nineveh, Indiana.

On June 8 the Wabash Valley between Lafayette and Terre Haute, Indiana was placed under flood alert and all residents near the Wabash River were urged to evacuate their homes.

Looting was reported in Seymour, Indiana where the White River had overflowed its banks forcing the evacuation of over one hundred homes. Governor Daniels dispatched extra state police to the city to curb the looting.

On July 10 five hundred members of the Kentucky National Guard were mobilized to assist Indiana in coping with the flood damage and rescuing stranded citizens. The same day flood waters raised above above records levels in at least 5 localities. In others the rising waters were near or at the historic 1913 flood levels. The flooding was the worst in Indiana's modern history according to Scott Morlock, a hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey in Indiana.

[edit] Road Closures

Many roads were closed due to high water. I-65 was closed southbound at the interchange with I-465 through Seymour.

[edit] Deaths

One man drowned in flood waters near Remington, Indiana.

Two deaths have been reported in Columbus, IN. The first was confirmed by the Department of Homeland Security on June 8.^[6] On June 9, the body of a Cummins employee was discovered a mile from where he was sighted swept away by floodwaters. ^[7]

[edit] Cost

Emergency Management Director Forrest Sutton suggested on June 8 that the flood may be the costliest disaster to ever strike the state.

[edit] Iowa

**June 2008 Iowa Flood**
Duration	June 7 - Ongoing
Damages	TBD
Fatalities	1 Deaths
Areas affected

Severe flooding in Iowa led to evacuations of many homes. In eastern Iowa along the Iowa River and Cedar River, flooding is expected to exceed that of the Flood of 1993.^[8] Flooding also forced the closure of a number of roads throughout the state, reaching the point where travel was not advised in some parts of the state. In Cedar Falls, officials were readying residents and downtown business owners to evacuate as the Cedar River threatened to spill over a levee. The river was expected to top the levee June 11, prompting a mandatory evacuation of downtown. In Waterloo, fast-moving water swept away a railroad bridge used to transport tractors from a John Deere factory to Cedar Rapids. It also prompted the city to shut its downtown and close five bridges.^[9] The Black Hawk County Emergency Management Agency recommended the evacuation of the Cedar Terrace Neighborhood in Southeast Waterloo on June 10.^[10] One person died in the Iowa flooding.^[11]

[edit] Michigan

**June 2008 Michigan Flood**
Duration	June 7 - Ongoing
Damages	TBD
Fatalities	8 Deaths
Areas affected

Several Tornadoes touched down in southern Michigan and flooding led to evacuation of many homes. At least eight people died in the flooding.

[edit] Missouri

The deluge of storms led to a quick rise of water on the Mississippi River which saw water crest ten feet above flood stage in Hannibal, Missouri on June 10. The National Weather Service predicted that the flood stage could be higher in the next two weeks. Most of the towns near the river are protected by levees, but outlying areas are vunerable to flooding.^[9]

[edit] Wisconsin

**June 2008 Wisconsin Flood**
Duration	June 7 - Ongoing
Damages	TBD
Fatalities	0 Deaths
Areas affected

Eleven tornadoes touched down in Wisconsin on Saturday, June 7. Continued heavy rains led to the Dell creek bypassing the dam holding Lake Delton. The lake is now nearly empty and the escaping flood water created a new channel for the Wisconsin River about a quarter mile away from the dam. Wisconsin National Guard engineers began repairs on the dam the same day, but the repairs are not expected to be completed for over a year.

The Kickapoo River rose several feet above flood stage destroying most of the town of Gays Mills, Wisconsin.

Westbound lanes of Interstate 94 were closed between Johnson Creek, Wisconsin and Lake Mills, Wisconsin on June 10, 2008 at 7 PM due to the rising Rock River.^[12]