INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Mike Aldrich was covered in mud as he hauled furniture, appliances and mementoes out of his Franklin home, invaded by floodwaters that in some areas reached levels that hadn’t been touched in decades.
Cleaning up his home in the city of 20,000 people about 25 miles southeast of Indianapolis was only one worry facing Aldrich on Monday. The same heavy rains that caused weekend flooding in Franklin intruded into his workplace, Columbus Regional Hospital, shutting it down.
“I’m trying to keep a good attitude, that’s all you can do,” said Aldrich, 44. “I told my wife that one storm took away my job and my house.”
Across southern Indiana, residents started the long recovery from flooding caused by up to 11 inches of rain on Saturday. Two people were killed and thousands displaced.
Hours after President Bush declared nearly a third of Indiana’s counties disaster areas, Gov. Mitch Daniels canceled a trade mission to Japan so he could oversee the state’s effort to cope with the worst flooding in modern history.
And it wasn’t over.
A fresh line of thunderstorms moved through the state Monday afternoon, dumping as much as two inches or more of rain on already waterlogged areas and causing flash flooding in some areas. Areas south and west of Indianapolis were hardest hit, the National Weather Service said. All four lanes of U.S. 50 near the Daviess-Knox county line were reported flooded.
Weather service meteorologist John Hendrickson said the latest rain would likely raise river levels in southern Indiana as the water flowed downstream, making some rivers crest even higher than had been expected.
“Some areas, that could be critical,” he said.
One of those areas was Elnora, about 100 miles southwest of Indianapolis. The White River already was forecast to crest Tuesday at nearby Newberry near 29 feet, or 16 feet above flood stage.
Some 140 Marines from North Carolina in Indiana for training and about 200 Indiana National Guard troops helped local emergency agencies sandbag a levee at Elnora. Officials asked residents to evacuate voluntarily.
“We’re giving the residents an opportunity to dodge a bullet. It (flooding through town) could still happen,” said Paul Goss of Daviess County Emergency Management.
For thousands of others, it was too late to dodge.
State officials said they could not yet give a dollar estimate on the damage or the number of homes and businesses destroyed. About 300 people remained in shelters, down from more than 1,200 Sunday night, said Joe Wainscott, executive director of the Indiana Department of Homeland Security. He had no estimate on the number of people forced to abandon their homes.
By Monday morning, eight sites along rivers and streams in central and southern Indiana had eclipsed the flood levels set during the March 1913 deluge considered Indiana’s greatest flood in modern times, said Scott Morlock, a hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey in Indiana.
The destruction led Bush to order federal aid to supplement state and local funds to 29 counties. Rushing water breached dams and washed out portions of highways, some of which remained closed.
On Mill Creek in Morgan County, state conservation officers on Monday recovered the body of Mark Stroud, 44, of Coatesville, a boater who had been missing since Saturday, said Phil Bloom, a spokesman for the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. Stroud was the second person to die in the flooding.
For those who survived, the flooding perpetuated a span of more than a week of wild weather than also included damaging winds and tornadoes.
“I think the state may have seen individual instances in the past that were also terribly devastating but I don’t know that we’ve had a string of them in a short number of days quite the like of this. If we have my history isn’t good enough to tell you when,” Daniels said.
Breaking News
Related Photos
-
Matt Kryger
Indiana's flooded areas hit again by rainstorms
- Breaking News
-
-
Local artists win at regionals
Five NorthWood High School students won at the 2012 Northwest Indiana & Lower Southwest Michigan Region of The Alliance for Young Writers & Artists.
-
Indiana lawmakers return to action after Super Bowl break
After a time-out to accommodate out-of-town Super Bowl visitors, the Indiana General Assembly is back in session to tackle legislation that had been bottlenecked by a contentious labor bill.
-
CITY COUNCIL: Housing Authority’s crisis packs the house
Mayor Allan Kauffman’s request to provide the beleaguered Goshen Housing Authority with an emergency infusion of $571,050 was passed by the City Council in an initial step toward approval, but there is much more discussion expected before a final vote.
-
CITY COUNCIL: First hurdle cleared for $571,050 in Goshen Housing Authority relief
Mayor Allan Kauffman’s request to provide the beleaguered Goshen Housing Authority with an emergency infusion of $571,050 was passed by City Council in an initial vote Tuesday, but there is much more discussion expected before a final vote.
-
UPDATE: Police release name of Fort Wayne man killed in crash
GOSHEN — One driver was killed and another hurt when a Ford SUV collided with a Chevrolet HHR at C.R.s 15 and 32 at 4:50 p.m. Tuesday.
-
Preschool mothers to host film about faith
Harvest Community Church will present “A Courageous Night: Dinner and A Movie” Feb. 11.
-
More work on new bike trail approved
An amendment to a contract with S & L Builders, Millersburg, was approved Monday by the Goshen Board of Public Works and Safety, to have S & L perform additional work on a bicycle/pedestrian path on West Washington Street near the Millrace Powerhouse project for $7,332.
-
Indianapolis organizers considering asking for another Super Bowl
If praise and adulation could put points on the scoreboard, then Indianapolis had a blowout victory hosting its first Super Bowl.
-
Mother donates funds to the Crossing in memory of her son
Sherrie Lovely knows what it means to lose a troubled child, and she’s willing to do whatever it takes to see that others are spared that awful experience.
-
As sectionals approach, NorthWood girls ranked 3rd
- More Breaking News Headlines
-
Lower-hassle Screening to Be Tested at Airports
Raw Video: Dog Rescued From Icy Colo. Water
Helmet Camera Captures Calif. Fire Rescue
Worker Tells 911: Powell 'exploded the House'
Triple Win: Santorum Takes Minn., Mo., Colo.
Injured Marine Inspired by Homecoming
No Rape Charges Against Son of NYPD Commissioner
Egypt's Ruling Generals Play Risky Game With US
Former Komen Exec Defends Funding Cut
Skip the Coffee Cup and Inhale Your Caffeine Fix
Calif. Gay Marriage Ban Ruled Unconstitutional
Jury Selection for Ex-UVa Athlete Enters 2nd Day
Cab Driver Helps Wis. Family Escape House Fire
Staff Removed at LA School During Abuse Probe
Runaway Goat Leads Police on Wild Chase
