Flooding in Major Cities Prompts Evacuations, Rescue of Residents

Several U.S. cities faced a wave of major flooding over the past few days, prompting officials to evacuate and rescue residents.

This week, officials in Mississippi, Arizona, Dallas and Las Vegas have reported heavy rainfall that resulted in flash flooding incidents. The flooding in these areas came several weeks after parts of Kentucky faced fatalities and widespread property damage due to severe flash floods.

Earlier this week, the National Weather Service in Jackson, Mississippi, issued flash flood warnings for numerous parts of the state. In a tweet, the National Weather Service said that 3 to 6 inches of additional rainfall were expected on Wednesday, "on top of already saturated and flooded areas."

"Widespread flash flooding likely," the update said. Over the past few days, numerous photos and videos have been posted on social media showing flooding in parts of the state.

"Flash flooding ONGOING in Canton this morning - in the same areas that were inundated with water a few weeks ago. Some areas are approaching 8-12" of rain today," Patrick Ellis, a meteorologist with WLBT news in Mississippi, wrote in a tweet showing photos of the flooding.

On Wednesday, Rankin County Sheriff Bryan Bailey shared several photos of rescue efforts following the flooding and wrote, "I am so proud of the men and women of the Rankin County Sheriff's Office. During disasters like todays flooding, all sheriffs department employees come together as a team and do whatever has to be done to help the people."

In another post, Bailey said, "All residents of Peach Tree Village have been rescued and evacuated by the sheriffs office and first responders." According to CNN, at least 31 residents of the nursing home in the city of Brandon were evacuated due to the flooding.

Newsweek reached out to the Rankin County Sheriff's Office for comment.

Similar flooding was seen in Dallas following heavy rainfall in the city. "We've broken several records at DFW Airport following the significant rain event over the past 24 hours. August 21st-22nd, 2022, is now the second wettest 24-hour period, coming in at 9.19"! That's only 0.38" shy of the #1 record. Daily records were also broken for 8/21 and 8/22," the National Weather Service in Fort Worth said.

Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins wrote on Twitter that a state of disaster was declared in the county due to flooding. Jenkins also confirmed that a 60-year-old woman died "when her vehicle was swept away by flood waters."

Newsweek reached out to the Dallas County judge for comment.

Jonathan Porter, a chief meteorologist for AccuWeather, told Newsweek that parts of the Dallas/Fort Worth area experienced 2 to 4 inches of rain per hour.

"Some of those [rainfall] totals, they were above 15 inches in some places. There was a widespread 8 to 12 inches of rain that occurred in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex," Porter said. "That's what led to the significant and catastrophic flash flooding, which tragically claimed at least one life."

Porter also told Newsweek that parts of the Southeast U.S., such as Dallas and Mississippi, are used to flash flooding incidents, but he noted that the most recent incidents are another example of "excessive rainfall rates."

"These extreme rainfall rates, of 2 to 4 inches per hour, that cause more significant flooding over a widespread area than what has been necessarily seen before," Porter said.

He continued, "These higher-end events, these high-end extreme rainfall events, these are the ones that we know are associated with a warming atmosphere and are made more likely to occur and their impacts more significant with a warmer atmosphere."

The National Weather Service in Las Vegas issued a flash flood warning on Wednesday night and said, "Slow-moving storms continue to produce heavy rain in the area. Expect flash flooding of low-water crossings, normally dry washes and roads."

Earlier this week, officials in Duncan, Arizona, issued a "mass evacuation," due to flooding risks. "At approximately 4:30 this morning the water levels of the Gila River reached a point where water began to spill into portions of Duncan. At that time, the Fire District was requested to assist in an evacuation of the areas in the flood plane, east of the Ranch House," the Duncan Valley Rural Fire District said in a Facebook post.

Update 8/25/22, 2:30 p.m. ET: This story was updated further information from AccuWeather Chief Meteorologist Jonathan Porter.