Eldon officials take stock after flash flood

Jun. 25—ELDON — Simply put, six hours did a lot of damage.

The city of Eldon and other officials on Friday began assessing the damage caused by a flash flood to Chippewa Creek in the middle of the town after storms soaked the area Thursday evening into the early-morning hours Friday.

And with more rain expected, local officials are preparing for what's next. A flash flood watch is in effect for the area through this morning, with another 1 to 2 inches of rain expected in a short period.

"This kind of flooding is new. I mean, we've had the Des Moines River flood, but that's not what happened," Eldon fire chief Linda Manley said.

Once the rain started, Wapello County Director of Emergency Management Tim Richmond said, the situation escalated quickly to the point where water rose and covered the creek bridge that crosses Highway 16. From there, firetrucks blocked both ends of the road into the town to prevent motorists from entering. Roads weren't reopened until about 2 a.m.

"I always check in with the fire chief when things are happening, and then the weather service was doing the same thing," Richmond said. "All this started around 8 p.m., and by 9 p.m., we had 6 inches of rain.

"The greatest concern at that time was the safety of motorists."

Richmond said a local gardener measured more than 12 inches of rain in his rain gauge when it was over.

Many homes and businesses suffered water damage in some way. Manley said City Hall, which is located across the street from the creek, had 5 1/2 feet of rain in the basement. On another side of a creek, a vehicle was found floating on the creek before resting on the bank once the water receded.

The damage, however, wasn't limited to just the city. A dozen culverts in the county were washed out, and the rain washed out the east shoulder of Highway 16 in front of Cardinal Elementary School. The Iowa Department of Transportation was working Friday afternoon to repair the shoulder at certain points in the highway.

Other rural roads were covered with water as well. A disaster declaration for the county is on the agenda for the board of supervisors meeting Tuesday.

Richmond and city crews were assessing damage during daylight hours, and he highly encouraged residents to submit photos and self-report damage by using a smartphone and a website that is posted on the EMA's Facebook page so there can be an accurate estimation of the damage, which will likely be costly. Preliminary indications, he said, were that the sewer systems and other infrastructure were still in good shape.

He also said cleanup kits were available for free at City Hall.

"The mayor (Jerry Potts) said the water levels were higher than they were in 1993," Richmond said. "And this is a much different type of flooding. Flash flooding is different than the river backing up. With a river flood situation, you have more time. In times like this, people come together. It's not the first rodeo. We've done this several times."

Three streets surround the creek, and the secondary entrance into the town, along Walnut Street, was also flooded, Manley said.

"We had no place to send people. We just had to turn them the around," she said.

Richmond said the coordination with the DOT was good.

"They have a bigger picture to look at, and they're worried about Keosauqua and places like that," he said. "So we were working on logistics. They brought a crew with road-closed signs. We had two or three plans, but they were Johnny-on-the-spot this morning."

"You're always thinking on your feet with something like this," Manley said. "Tim and I are both weather buffs anyway, so we were looking at the weather in the afternoon. I live three miles across the river, and River Road was flooded out there, and it was everything I had to get here."

With more rain in the forecast, preparing really isn't the issue, especially if a creek overflows.

"We know what's possible now," Manley said. "But there's really no preparing for it, except we know what to do."

— Chad Drury can be reached at [email protected], and on Twitter @ChadDrury

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