Helen Norris, director of the Logan County Emergency Management Agency, said today she has been monitoring the water levels, but has not yet seen any evidence or had reports of any flooding in homes.
The Mad River spilled over its banks in the village of West Liberty after heavy rains Tuesday. No flooding has been reported in homes at this time, Logan County Emergency Management Agency Director Helen Norris reports. (AERIAL PHOTO | SCOTT DAVIS PHOTOGRAPHY)
The area between Russells Point and Lakeview known as the slough is typically the first area to flood, followed by a portion of northwest Russells Point.
“I went up to the lake and drove around yesterday prior to the second wave of storms coming through and the slough was out of its banks and water was starting into the neighborhoods and across the roads,” she said.
“The EMA has not been contacted by the sheriff’s office or any of the communities.
There were a few issues with sewage at places like West Mansfield where pumps couldn’t keep up and there was some water encroachment near Quincy, but none seemed to be in homes so far.
“We are keeping an eye on it, but we’re not in a state of activation. Our role is to be involved when it exceeds the capability of the local community.”
She said residents should report flooding issues first to their local communities or via the Logan County Sheriff’s Office.
“We want to know if people have water in the ground floor of their homes, but not their garages or basements,” Norris said.
The next few days are supposed to be mostly dry, hopefully allowing much of the water to move downstream, she said.
Residents are also urged to use caution when driving into roads with standing water.
State Route 720, which runs through the slough, was closed Tuesday evening after a vehicle became stuck in the high water.
Logan County Engineer Scott Coleman also reported four county roads were closed:
• County Road 54 between state routes 274 and 720;
• County Road 60 between county roads 54 and 21;
• County Road 11 between county roads 32 and 198; and
• County Road 62 south of State Route 508.
Residents are also urged to use caution around high water on County Road 32 in front of the sheriff’s office, which is techincally a city street, Coleman said.
The engineer’s office responded to numerous issues regarding flooding on roads Tuesday and was prepared to handle more today, he noted.
“We were chasing different spots where water goes over the road,” he said. “If tile gets plugged up with corn or soybean chaff from fields water can run over the road and cause problems.
“After a few hours letting water drain we will probably see water getting backed up on the Miami and Muchinnippi (Creek) and have some issues.”
There were also a handful of power outages associated with the storm, including Brown Avenue and Elm Street early today, according to the Bellefontaine Fire Department.
The Dayton Power & Light outage map this morning showed several small outages throughout Logan County, each affecting less than 50 customers including a spot in eastern Bellefontaine, near DeGraff, three near Indian Lake and two near Belle Center.