Wichita area deals with flood’s aftermath

As people dried out Saturday after relentless rain dumped on the Wichita area, residents in hard-hit areas said it seemed worse than the unforgettable flood of 1998.

No immediate comparable data was available Saturday, but it’s clear that the Sedgwick/Summer counties line was the “bull’s-eye” of a storm system that sat over the area, said National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Metzger.

Average rainfall amounts for the 72-hour period ending Saturday ranged from 6 to 14 inches in Sedgwick County, Metzger said. “The closer to the south you were, the higher the amounts.”

Close to 8 inches had fallen in Wichita by Saturday morning, according to the National Weather Service.

As bad as it was, the consequences could have been a worse if the urban center of Wichita had been in the bull’s-eye, he said. “Concrete and asphalt does not absorb. It just runs off.”

Just 3 miles south of downtown Wichita, around Haysville, the rainfall average for the 72-hour period was around 11 inches, Metzger noted.

And there definitely will be more rain arriving in the area with another front around sunrise on Tuesday, he said late Saturday afternoon. The difference is, this system, although possibly severe, will move through faster and shouldn’t be as widespread. “These storms (of the past 72 hours) just didn’t move.”

Jessica Vaughters was one of those caught in the deluge and flooding with her 7-month-old baby and 6-year-old daughter. On Saturday morning, boats had to ferry her and her daughters from their home in Ponderosa Estates between Belle Plaine and Peck. Flooding from the nearby Ninnescah River made an island out of their home. They stepped off the porch onto one boat, then transferred to another.

Vaughters, 27, remembers the 1998 flooding that approached the family home where she still lives. But this rainfall and flooding seemed worse, “and the current is ridiculous,” she said. At one point, she saw someone’s couch and coffee tables float by in waters she estimated reached around 7 feet deep. She fears it could be a week before she gets back into her house, depending on the condition of the roads.

At his family’s home 5 miles east of Clearwater, Tim Seal was letting his original 1969 Chevrolet Camaro dry out in the sun Saturday afternoon. Floodwaters caked debris on the side up to a foot from the bottom of the door and soaked the carpet. But he was relieved that the factory engine “kicked right over” when he went to start it.

On a bridge south of Clearwater, residents watched chocolate-brown floodwaters rush past, pushing massive logs, some as long as big-rig trailers.

All over the Wichita area, residents and emergency personnel on Saturday were still dealing with the aftermath and preparing for more problems as rivers continued to rise.

On Friday night, one motorist was pulled from her submerged vehicle in east Wichita by rescuers who used ropes.

In the western part of Butler County, from south of Potwin to Rose Hill, most low-lying street crossings were impassible, said Ryan Mitchell of the Butler County dispatch office.

Southwest 70th Street from Santa Fe Road to Ohio Street was closed, as was Thunder Road southwest of Augusta.

“Water is continuing to rise on the Whitewater and Walnut rivers in our areas,” he said.

The National Weather Service reported a record-high crest for the Ninnescah River at Belle Plaine. On Saturday, it had crested to 29.5 feet, surpassing the previous record of 29.2 feet set in November 1998. People were being evacuated in the area Saturday morning.

In Sedgwick County, emergency personnel received 66 submersion calls between 7 p.m. on Friday and 7 a.m. on Saturday, said Sedgwick County Fire Battalion Chief Matt Bowen.

Two of those were Level 2 calls, meaning they required a larger number of responders.

One created a dramatic scene at flood-prone Second Street and Bleckley in Wichita, Bowen said. Water there rose from a few inches to up to 4 feet deep within 15 minutes on Friday, he said.

Around 8:30 p.m., a woman traveling west on Second Street drove her Cadillac into high water, which swept her vehicle more than 100 feet. At one point, her car was almost completely submerged, Bowen said.

Using ropes, rescuers launched a rescue boat, got the woman a life jacket and were able to pull her from the window of the car. The woman was uninjured and refused treatment.

Bowen said his department is continuing to stress the importance of not driving into floodwaters.

“One of the biggest messages we can get out is that there’s not anything worth that risk,” he said. “Find an alternative route and turn around.”

In a statement Saturday afternoon, Sedgwick County officials said no injuries had been reported related to the storm and flooding.

“We are grateful that there were no injuries during this storm, but there is damage to homes and roads that is still being assessed,” County Manager Mike Scholes said. A large team of agencies and organizations “worked through the night to keep people safe,” he said.

The county asked that people who see a damaged road should call 211, give the location and describe the problem.

Anyone who has a water well that they think has been affected by the flooding is asked to visit http://www.kdheks.gov/waterwell/index.html or call the City of Wichita Environmental Health Department at 316-268-8351. Officials also gave this caution: “Drink only treated water and wash your hands after contact with flood waters or items that have been in flood waters.”

This story was originally published September 10, 2016 at 12:01 PM with the headline "Wichita area deals with flood’s aftermath."