Flooding has already occurred from weekend rain in the northern parts of the Miami Valley. An additional 2-3 inches of rain could be recorded through today, and rains are expected again Wednesday night into Thursday, according to Storm Center 7 Chief Meteorologist McCall Vrydaghs.
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“Most of what I’m seeing is not a prolonged rain, it’s just we’re so saturated at this point that any really heavy storm that comes through in a 20, 30-minute time-frame could lead to flooding,” Vrydaghs said. “People should check before they leave Thursday morning to find out what road might be flooded. That could change how you get to work.”
Sunday’s rainfall, at 1.52 inches, set a single-day record for the date.
Vrydaghs said she doesn’t expect another single-day record to fall this week, but it’s possible a new record could be set for June’s monthly rainfall total.
So far this year, nearly 26 inches of rainfall has been recorded in the Dayton region, about 7 inches above normal, according to NWS.
The increased rainfall hasn’t gone unnoticed at the Miami Valley Conservancy District, which monitors the Great Miami River and maintains flood controls.
The Great Miami is about 5 and a half feet above normal for this time of year, and five of the river’s dams were storing water to prevent flooding over the weekend, according to Mike Ekberg, Conservancy District manager of water resources monitoring and analysis.
Ekberg said this is the 16th high-water event of the year, which is double the average total for the entire year.
“Most of the high-water events haven’t been really big,” Ekberg said. “2019 has just been a very wet year. Every month from January through May, we’ve been above average for precipitation in Southwest Ohio.”
Some good news is expected for Friday, when it is expected to be dry, but rain chances could return on Saturday.
Most of the worst flooding happened in the far northern Miami Valley.
For example, County Road 62 in Logan County was impassable Monday afternoon.
In Urbana, the Settlers Ridge Apartments were flooded on Monday. Cars in the parking lot were submerged as residents tried to save what belongings they could.
Resident Roxanne Gillenwater showed WHIO’s Gabrielle Enright her apartment, where a layer of water still covered the floor.
“We have mold everywhere. I have brand new furniture that’s ruined. We threw away three dressers. My bookshelf. A ton of clothes,” Gillenwater said. “Here I am throwing money into an apartment and we’re going to lose everything.”
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