Skies open up leaving much of south-central US underwater
By
Mark Puleo, AccuWeather staff writer
Updated Jun 10, 2021 2:29 PM EDT
The saturated state of Arkansas will need more than a couple of hours of sunshine to dry up all the rain that fell in recent days, as will other parts of the south-central United States.
The intensely heavy rain triggered the National Weather Service (NWS) to issue the rarely used flash flood emergency warning for the southeastern portion of Arkansas on Tuesday. The issuance is reserved for the "exceedingly rare situations when a severe threat to human life and catastrophic damage from a flash flood is happening or will happen soon,” the NWS explained in a graphic.
As drivers who attempted to navigate the submerged roads around Pine Bluff, Arkansas, could attest, Tuesday's conditions certainly met that criteria.
Motorists slowly work their way through flooded roadways amid Tuesday's torrential downpours. (Brian Emfinger/LiveStormsMedia)
"A slow-moving storm has been swamping the region for the last few days with rounds of showers and heavy to at times, severe thunderstorms," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dave Houk said. "Around Pine Bluff, Arkansas, there has been nearly 10 inches of rain in the last three days."
That would be near-normal rainfall for the entire summer in the Pine Bluff area, Houk added.
Such intense rain forced the closures of dozens of roadways in the state. Many roads that stayed open became traps for stranded drivers.
Video shared by motorists showed water levels as high as vehicle doorhandles. The floodwater was deep enough for waves to be created by the cars driving through it.
According to the Magnolia Reporter, up to 3 feet of water was reported on some roadways in the area of the flash flood emergency.
In Arkansas, the city of Rohwer posted the highest rainfall total with 19.22 inches since Monday, with a couple cities of Mississippi reaching over 10 inches total.
As daunting as the floodwaters on the street were for drivers, they were certainly no less scary for homeowners who watched the excess rain trickle into their homes.
THV11 shared footage, captured by Dumas resident Tahara McDonald, showing floodwaters that had reached inside her mother’s home.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
According to Houk, the last few days of rain have also brought nearly 5 inches of precipitation to Monticello, Arkansas, in the southeastern part of the state, and more than 6 inches to Clarksdale and Tupelo in northern Mississippi.
The intense Tuesday rain was just the latest round of storminess that has inundated the south-central U.S. in recent days. Prior to drenching Arkansas and Mississippi, the pattern left much of Texas and Louisiana flooded.
According to FreightWaves.com, Lake Charles, Louisiana, and Beaumont-Port Arthur, Texas, both received over 20 to 25 inches of rain since May 1, which is more than three times the normal amount.
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo
News / Severe Weather
Skies open up leaving much of south-central US underwater
By Mark Puleo, AccuWeather staff writer
Updated Jun 10, 2021 2:29 PM EDT
The saturated state of Arkansas will need more than a couple of hours of sunshine to dry up all the rain that fell in recent days, as will other parts of the south-central United States.
The intensely heavy rain triggered the National Weather Service (NWS) to issue the rarely used flash flood emergency warning for the southeastern portion of Arkansas on Tuesday. The issuance is reserved for the "exceedingly rare situations when a severe threat to human life and catastrophic damage from a flash flood is happening or will happen soon,” the NWS explained in a graphic.
As drivers who attempted to navigate the submerged roads around Pine Bluff, Arkansas, could attest, Tuesday's conditions certainly met that criteria.
Motorists slowly work their way through flooded roadways amid Tuesday's torrential downpours. (Brian Emfinger/LiveStormsMedia)
"A slow-moving storm has been swamping the region for the last few days with rounds of showers and heavy to at times, severe thunderstorms," AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dave Houk said. "Around Pine Bluff, Arkansas, there has been nearly 10 inches of rain in the last three days."
That would be near-normal rainfall for the entire summer in the Pine Bluff area, Houk added.
Such intense rain forced the closures of dozens of roadways in the state. Many roads that stayed open became traps for stranded drivers.
Video shared by motorists showed water levels as high as vehicle doorhandles. The floodwater was deep enough for waves to be created by the cars driving through it.
According to the Magnolia Reporter, up to 3 feet of water was reported on some roadways in the area of the flash flood emergency.
In Arkansas, the city of Rohwer posted the highest rainfall total with 19.22 inches since Monday, with a couple cities of Mississippi reaching over 10 inches total.
As daunting as the floodwaters on the street were for drivers, they were certainly no less scary for homeowners who watched the excess rain trickle into their homes.
THV11 shared footage, captured by Dumas resident Tahara McDonald, showing floodwaters that had reached inside her mother’s home.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FREE ACCUWEATHER APP
According to Houk, the last few days of rain have also brought nearly 5 inches of precipitation to Monticello, Arkansas, in the southeastern part of the state, and more than 6 inches to Clarksdale and Tupelo in northern Mississippi.
The intense Tuesday rain was just the latest round of storminess that has inundated the south-central U.S. in recent days. Prior to drenching Arkansas and Mississippi, the pattern left much of Texas and Louisiana flooded.
According to FreightWaves.com, Lake Charles, Louisiana, and Beaumont-Port Arthur, Texas, both received over 20 to 25 inches of rain since May 1, which is more than three times the normal amount.
Related:
Keep checking back on AccuWeather.com and stay tuned to the AccuWeather Network on DirecTV, Frontier, Spectrum, FuboTV, Philo, and Verizon Fios.
Report a Typo