The threat of flooding shifted east into West Virginia and Kentucky on Monday as Indiana began recovering from storms that killed at least six people and produced some of the state’s worst deluges in decades.
Flood warnings and watches covered eastern Kentucky and much of West Virginia. “Flash flooding caused by excessive rainfall continues to be possible,” the National Weather Service said, including around Beckley and Charleston, the West Virginia capital.
There’s a 40% chance of excessive rainfall across much of West Virginia on Monday, according to the US Weather Prediction Center. The threat is particularly strong in mountainous areas, where towns, mines, roads and rail lines crowd narrow valleys, known locally as hollows, alongside streams and small rivers. Flooding there can develop quickly and be devastating.
Widespread flooding has hit the Midwest and parts of the Appalachian Mountains as thunderstorms have repeatedly brought downpours, crop-damaging winds, hail and tornadoes this summer.
Indianapolis, a city of about 900,000, suffered its “most severe flooding in 30-plus years” after storms last week, Mayor Joe Hogsett said Saturday on X. Hundreds of homes near the White River in the state capital were evacuated. The river crested at a record 24.6 feet (7.5 meters) in suburban Noblesville after rising more than 20 feet.
Across Indiana, Kentucky and West Virginia, over 160,000 homes and businesses were without power as of 9:30 a.m. New York time, according to PowerOutage.com.
On Monday, a broader area stretching east to Washington had at least a 15% chance of excessive rainfall. Southern Indiana had a 5% risk, and for the first time in days there were no widespread flood watches or warnings across the state. Flood warnings remained in effect along many rivers and adjacent areas.
The Wabash River at Terre Haute was still rising Monday and is forecast to reach moderate flood stage by Thursday, the weather service said. None of the rivers across the Midwest are currently forecast to reach major flood stage.
Severe thunderstorms are also possible in two areas Monday. The US Storm Prediction Center has a level 2 risk across parts of the northern Great Plains, mainly South Dakota and Nebraska and extending into northwest Iowa and southwest Minnesota. A second level 2 risk covers eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina.
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