Minor flooding expected along Ark River as rain continues to fall in Kansas
As rain continues to fall in much of soggy central Kansas, up to 3 feet of floodwater is expect along the Arkansas River in Sedgwick County.
Water in the Arkansas River at Derby is expected to pass the 12-foot flood stage by early Tuesday afternoon and rise another 3 feet by early Wednesday afternoon, the National Weather Service predicts. Fields will be flooded, as will portions of Washington Street on the west side of the river.
The flood stage for the Little Arkansas River near Sedgwick is 22 feet, and flood waters are expected to rise to nearly 26 feet by Wednesday morning, the weather service predicts. Fields are expected to flood, as are roads around Ridge Road and 109th Street.
Law enforcement has already reported flooding just north of Sedgwick in Harvey County, the weather service said.
The Arkansas River will crest at nearly 20 feet on Wednesday, Sedgwick County emergency management said on social media. That 19.9 feet of water — about 3 1/2 feet above the flood stage at Mulvane — may flood portions of Highway 53.
In Sedgwick County, runoff from heavy rainfall will flood small creeks and streams, urban areas, highways, streets, underpasses and other low lying areas, the weather service warns.
Flood warnings for Barton, Ellis, Ellsworth, Harvey, Kingman, Lincoln, Marion, McPherson, Reno, Rice, Rush, Russell, Sedgwick and Sumner counties continue through Tuesday afternoon.
Elsewhere in Sedgwick County, a flood warning for the Cowskin Creek at 119th Street lasts through Thursday morning. An emergency manager reported flooding on Maple Street between 167th and 135th near Goddard, the weather service said.
Law enforcement reported flooding of several rural roads across Sumner County, mainly on the southern side.
A flood warning was issued for the Ninnescah River near Peck, Mulvane Fire Rescue said on Facebook. The NWS said the forecast is for water to pass the 17-foot flood stage by early Tuesday morning, rising to nearly 21 feet by early Wednesday morning.
With that much water, the north approach of the river bridge will be flooded, and flood waters will be 1 mile wide along the north bank. The river is expected to fall below the flood stage by Thursday morning.
Flooding is expected to cover a small section of K-55 west of Belle Plaine, but floodwater on about a half-mile of U.S. 81 along the river may be as deep as a foot and a half, the weather service said.
El Dorado police said in a tweet that the area of Main Street and Carr Avenue flooded Monday afternoon. That’s about three blocks from the U.S. Highway 54 bridge over the Walnut River.
A flood warning for the Whitewater River at Towanda was extended through Tuesday morning. A flood warning for the Walnut River at Augusta runs through Wednesday.
Flood warnings for the Walnut River at Winfield and Arkansas City were extended through Saturday.
In Reno County, multiple roads were flooded Monday afternoon, the sheriff’s office and an emergency management director said on Facebook.
Hays police said in a Facebook post that some streets were flooding. Elsewhere in the county, many county roads are under water and the gravel roads may have been washed away, Ellis County emergency management said on Facebook.
In the Kansas City area, about 20 students were rescued by firefighters Monday morning after their school bus stalled in flood waters south of Swope Park. The bus was headed to Raytown South High School, the Kansas City Star reported.
“I think our bus driver thought it was a puddle,” Alexis Novello, who was on the bus with her brother, told the Star. “But she tried to go through and the water went up as if you were driving a normal car, but it was so much water that she got stuck.”