A record-setting 6.26 inches of rain fell between 12:30 a.m. Monday and 1 a.m. Tuesday in West Plains, recorded by the National Weather Service office in Springfield, and shut down in-person classes at area schools and caused area rivers and creeks to rise to levels not seen since 2017, according to official reports.
The 6-plus inches of rain that fell bested the previous record of 2.2 inches set in 1994, and was part of a two-day total that, by some counts, reached 12 inches of rain.
By comparison, when southern Missouri was affected by catastrophic flooding in 2017, 19 inches of rain fell between April 28 and May 1, with the bulk of it occurring on April 29; rivers breached their banks and many homes damaged or lost.
At about noon Tuesday, Ozark County Sheriff’s Office personnel took to social media to warn of flooding of the North Fork of the White River and Bryant Creek: “The North Fork White River at Tecumseh is forecasted to reach 29 feet, while Bryant Creek is steadily rising, approaching levels seen in 2017. Both rivers reaching 30 feet can cause significant impacts,” the Facebook post said, adding that numerous roads remain closed because of the flooding. A flood warning, at the time of the post issued through 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, was extended through 9:30 a.m. Wednesday after Missouri Department of Transportation officials reported flooding at low water crossings in Douglas and Ozark counties. That warning is in effect for those counties; other counties received separate warnings, most of which were set to expire Tuesday evening.
Warnings issued for Jacks Fork at Eminence and Current River near Powder Mill, both in Shannon County, was initially set to expire Tuesday morning and were extended by multiple days.
The warning for Jacks Fork was extended through Thursday morning. National Weather Service officials noted that at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Jacks Fork was about 4 feet below flood stage, which is 12 feet, and was expected to crest early Wednesday morning at 18.5 feet, then fall below flood stage that same morning. Highway 106 is expected to be impacted. Meteorologists noted the forecast compares to a previous crest of 18.2 feet that occurred on June 13, 1928.
The Current River warning was extended to early Sunday morning. NWS officials noted that the river was at 14.1 feet at 9:45 a.m., above the 8-foot flood stage, and had within the previous 24 hours peaked at 17.8 feet. However, officials said, it is expected to crest at 37 feet Wednesday morning, then fall back below flood stage early Saturday.
In-person classes were canceled on Tuesday for West Plains and surrounding school districts, and Missouri State University-West Plains classes canceled classes Monday and Tuesday due to heavy rainfall and flooding, officials said.
Howell Creek in the center of West Plains approached its banks but did not breach, which the City of West Plains has attributed to two stormwater detention basins that have been built since 2017, at the North Fork of Howell Creek and at Galloway Creek. Both were completed earlier this year with the goal of slowing water flow by up to 33% to reduce peak flooding, city officials said.
“With rain from Sunday to Tuesday, the basins passed their first major test,” city officials said in a statement on Facebook. “Observations indicate that most flooding in town is due to stormwater drainage rather than creek overflows — proof that these projects are making a difference.”
Videos posted Tuesday by citizens to social media showed rapidly rushing waters over many main roads, including Broadway near Porter Wagoner Boulevard, where floodwaters could be seen against the entrance to Little Caesars Pizza.
In the 24-hour period preceding 12:32 a.m. Monday, the National Weather Service office in Springfield had recorded 1.52 inches of rainfall in West Plains. Combined with the 6.26 recorded for the same time frame on Tuesday, that makes 7.77 inches of rain that fell by 1 a.m. More has fallen since, with two-day totals recorded ranging from 8.5 inches recorded at at 8 a.m. Tuesday at West Plains Regional Airport in Pomona to 11.97 inches recorded at 7 a.m. in Houston.
Local storm reports submitted to the NWS on Monday showed Washington Avenue and Broadway was impassable at 4:16 a.m., with between 5 and 6 inches of rain ponded at the intersection. The Howell County Sheriff’s Office issued a media statement that morning urging residents to stay home if at all possible due to the conditions, and to avoid low water crossings if they must drive.
“We have had reports of several vehicles submerged in water this morning,” said Public Information Officer Angela Conboy, adding that flooding was reported in Howell County at county roads 8630 and 9100, 1280 and 2010 and 5130 a mile from CC Highway, as well as W Highway 3 miles south of Mtn. View and the junction of MM and K highways near West Plains.
Shortly after noon Monday, West Plains police published an update to Facebook that Bratton and Howell Avenues, First through 10th streets, Sunset Terrace, Lanton Road, Lincoln and St. Louis streets, Washington and Jefferson avenues, County Road 1770 and BB Highway inside city limits are all underwater, and urged drivers to take alternative routes.
Water rescues were performed at 8:45 a.m. on County Road 9100 near Spring Creek in the South Fork area, and County Road 1280 north of JMB Park on BB Highway near West Plains, where a car flooded out, reports show.
Road closures due to flooding were reported at P Highway at Big Creek in Shannon County; U Highway at the South Prong of Jacks Fork in Texas County; H Highway at the North Fork of the White River in Sycamore, Ozark County; Y Highway in Mtn. View; UU Highway at Lost Camp Creek in Pomona; T and J highways in Hardenville, Ozark County; Highway 95 in Rockbridge, Ozark County.
An updated list of closures in Douglas and Ozark counties published Tuesday afternoon included Bryant Creek at County Road 223, Pond Fork at County Road 883, North Fork River at County Road County Road 278, Little North Fork River at County Road 916, Lick Creek at County Road 528 and Beaver Creek at County Road 524.
Strong thunderstorms rolled through southeastern Ozark and southern Howell counties around 3 a.m. Monday, with flash flood warnings issued within that hour, indicated by radar, for Ozark, Douglas, Howell and Texas counties. Further radar-indicated flood warnings were issued between about 10 a.m. and 11:45 a.m. for Jacks Fork at Alley Spring and Eminence and the Current River at Powder Mill, all in Shannon County.
Rain continued through Tuesday morning, and at about 8:30 a.m., Howell-Oregon Electric Coop announced 621 of its members were without power across its service area from Tecumseh to Eminence. Photos posted to the co-op’s Facebook page show dangerously high water, making it difficult if not impossible for electrical crews to restore power to some customers until the waters recede.
To report a continued outage to HOEC, members may do so on the SmartHub app or the website www.hoecoop.org. Members can also call 417-256-2131 or 888-HOE-POWER.
