| | |
 |
|
| 01-14-2005 | Previous edition: 01-13-2005 |
        
     |
Printer-friendly version Flooded roads present potential danger to citizens
City Editor The Wabash River is predicted to crest Saturday morning as the rainstorms continue in Tippecanoe County. The river water level stood at 23.02 feet at 1 p.m. on Jan. 13 and was still rising. The predicted crest is at 26.4 feet. "That would be the highest level for quite some time," said Scott Morlock, data chief of United States Geological Survey. "That would be the highest level since 1943." Although the water level was expected to drop, the five inches of rain received in January in the Greater Lafayette area will raise the level again. "Rain has fallen nearly every day this year," said Ken Scheeringa, a meteorology specialist at Purdue. "We’ve had an onslaught of rainy days." Although there has been mild flooding in the Greater Lafayette area, Indianapolis and Frankfort, Ind., have been hit the hardest. The farther south you go, the more rain you will find and Lafayette has been on the northern edge of it, Scheeringa said. However, he still urges drivers to be aware of road closures and high water. "When there is a road closed sign, don’t go through it," he said. Two Tippecanoe County citizens learned that lesson the hard way. Between 9:30 and 10 p.m., the Sheriff’s Department received an emergency phone call from a young man and his girlfriend. The two had driven past two ‘road closed’ signs and were several hundred yards into the water when their car stalled. They managed to climb through the sunroof and onto the roof of the car to call the police. When assistance arrived, a rescue boat chartered the two victims to the roadside where they were examined by paramedics and released. The driver was then cited for ignoring the barricades, said Sheriff William Anderson with the Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Department. While some lower area roads are still closed in the Greater Lafayette area, the rain is predicted to come to a stop soon. Jason Puma, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, said the precipitation would turn into snow as the temperatures drop. After the snow, there is no precipitation forecast for the next seven days. It will be cold and dry, he said. As the temperature is dropping, pooling and standing water on roadways may freeze and drivers are urged to use caution. Printer-friendly version |
|
Front Page | Campus | City | Features | Opinions | Sports | Classifieds Advertising | Archive | Links | About us | Letter Submission Form To report any errors with or to give ideas on how we can improve the online edition of The Exponent contact Online Production |
