Storms = Flooding 4/22

I've been saying for the last week that we are in a prolonged period of active weather for the Midwest and the KFVS viewing area. The usual attention getter is thunderstorms with hail, wind and tornadoes and we've been seeing all of those things. But when you get prolonged periods of storms, heavy rain can often times be a bigger concern.

A front is going to stall out over the area and allow almost daily chances for rain over the next 5-6 days. The Hydrometeorolical Prediction Center (HPC) has put out their new rainfall projection for the next five day.

(Click the image to see larger version.)

The above numbers show what they are expecting for today through Tuesday.

To put it in context, I was on a conference call with the National Weather Service in Paducah today and the service hydrologist said that if the expected rain does happen the flooding would exceed the following levels:

• It would exceed the 1995 flood in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.
• It would exceed the 1997 flood in Cairo, Illinois.
• It would exceed the 1997 flood in Paducah, Kentucky.

Something interesting to note. The hydrologist said this will be the first time in over 20 years that both the Ohio River and the Mississippi River will be flooding at these levels at the same time.

Also a heads up for later today and tonight. The KFVS viewing area is in a "Slight Risk" for severe thunderstorms through 7am Saturday morning. Parts of southeast Missouri are also included in a "Moderate Risk" for severe weather during the same time period. It appears that large hail will be the main threat for most of the area. There is a higher chance of tornadoes in southern Missouri.

Just a reminder... If there is water covering roadways, DO NOT cross them! As the National Weather Service says, "Turn around. Don't drown."