Record rainfall in Michiana leaves floods, damaged homes and a long cleanup

Aug. 17--SOUTH BEND -- The water wouldn't stop. It poured steadily and heavily in the late-night hours, wearing away at foundations and crawling into basements and garages.

Hour after hour, the driving rain stayed over Michiana. By daybreak on Tuesday, residents awoke to striking images.

Cars overturned. Water lapping at front doors. People wading hip-deep into their driveways and streets.

And a man in a boat, rowing past homes, cars and street signs.

There was also the reality of cleanup and for many, the scramble to find shelter. What do you with a basement covered nearly to the ceiling in water? Where do you spend the night when your home is no longer habitable? How much of this, if any, will insurance cover?

It was by all measures a historic rainfall in the region, causing the most damage on the south side of South Bend but also making its mark on Mishawaka, Niles and other cities. The storm set a new South Bend record for rainfall on Aug. 15 at 7.69 inches, and nearly another inch fell by the early morning hours. More broadly, it was the most rainfall on any date in South Bend. The previous mark was 6.58 inches, set on Sept. 13, 2008.

"The system had some tropical moisture from the the Gulf of Mexico associated with it. It was a fairly strong low pressure system for this time of year," said Amos Dodson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service's northern Indiana office. "The way it set up, it was oriented so the rain fell over the same areas for an extended period. It just happened to be South Bend."

There were no deaths or serious injuries reported. But for people like Arkiess Washington on Frederickson Street in South Bend, the record still meant a nightmare. She was sleeping in her bed when her basement foundation caved in, though she didn't realize at first what happened.

"I'm glad to be alive, because I heard the house go boom and I felt the house shake," she said. "I could have been gone if it wasn't for my neighbor banging on my door. I thank God so much."

Water slowly recedes

South Bend officials throughout Tuesday barricaded water-logged streets across the city to keep cars away. Many remained closed by Tuesday night as the water receded slowly.

"Our water and wastewater system are operating, but they were not designed for this sort of rainfall, so the water will not recede in certain areas for some time," Public Works Director Eric Horvath said.

South Bend firefighters responded to more than 117 calls between midnight and 8 a.m. Tuesday morning, including 13 water rescues. Those rescues involved motorists who either tried to drive through floodwaters or were swept up in flash floods.

City officials, including Mayor Pete Buttigieg, repeated the same advice at press conferences. Don't go into standing or moving water. Don't wade into flooded basements if the electricity is still on. Don't drive around the street barriers.

"The barriers are there for a reason, whether you see standing water or not," Buttigieg said.

South Bend schools will still open Wednesday, the first day of the new school year, though some bus routes may be altered.

City officials are gathering information on how many properties were flooded, how many residents were displaced by the flooding and how many stayed at an emergency shelter opened by the American Red Cross of Northern Indiana at the O'Brien Fitness Center.

They are also trying to determine if the city will be eligible for federal emergency funding.

So why was the south side hit especially hard?

For one, the soil on that side of town is heavy in clay, which does not absorb water well, Horvath said.

But elevation also plays a role. Bowman Creek, the primary watershed on the south side, descends 75 feet as it makes its way north toward the St. Joseph River, Horvath said. Water, when it enters the creek, moves swiftly and has no time to absorb into the soil.

Also, Bowman Creek narrows into a culvert in the area of Main Street and Ewing Avenue, creating what amounts to a bottleneck during periods of heavy rain.

Mishawaka fares better

Doing some math, Karl Kopec, the wastewater manager for Mishawaka Utilities, figures that almost 2.2 billion gallons of water fell on his city from mid-day Monday to 9 a.m. Tuesday.

The city's wastewater treatment plant recorded 8.1 inches of precipitation.

The utility was still treating stormwater even though it was coming in at rates higher than the system's "peak" rate for 13 hours.

Rainwater was seaping into buildings at School City of Mishawaka, but the new school year began on schedule Tuesday.

At Mishawaka High School, ceilings were leaking in several areas, including the main gym, which in one spot had a leak that resembled a "waterfall," said Mike Faulkner, director of operations.

Indian Lakes Apartments saw its lakes swell so high that the water filled parking lots and reached the edge of some apartment buildings.

But Mishawaka's city streets fared much better than South Bend's. By midday, all Mishawaka city streets were open.

Still, the rainfall was one for the books.

"This is the largest rainstorm that we have ever dealt with," Kopec said.

- Howard Dukes, Margaret Fosmoe and Joe Dits contributed to this report.

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