Heavy Rains Cause Flash Flooding in Kalona, Evacuation
By Dave Franzman
The Kalona Fire Department helped take residents of Meadow Brook Mobile Home Court to drier ground during flash flooding Tuesday, June 15, 2010, in Kalona. (Jim Slosiarek)
By
Becky Ogann
Story Created:
Jun 15, 2010 at 1:51 PM CST
Story Updated:
Jun 15, 2010 at 4:15 PM CST
KALONA - Fire officials in Kalona say a flash flood emergency in that community earlier Tuesday has definitely eased. But the high water brought by an apparently unnamed creek did leave a big clean up job in its wake. Kalona Fire Chief Steve Yotty said he measured 2.5 inches of rain at his personal gauge in a little more than an hours’ time Tuesday morning. That down pour forced the water in a creek on the west side of Kalona out of its banks, spilling into an area centered around A Ave. on the SE side of Kalona.
Water got into a number of homes’ basements and even forced a few people to evacuate at the Meadow Brook Mobile Home Park. Yotty says firefighters did help a couple of families in that mobile home park get out of the way of the water but no one was hurt and he said no one was in serious danger at any time.
The water overflowing that creek did fill one basement at 305 A Ave. with about eight feet of muddy water. Firefighters assisted the homeowner by pumping out the basement.
Other nearby neighbors said they also had close calls. Sherry Bryner who lives in an apartment near the area said she frantically tried to move furniture up off her ground floor. She said the water stopped rising about a half inch from getting inside her apartment.
By early afternoon, the water was falling quickly in Kalona, and fire officials informed residents impacted by the flash flooding they could return to their homes and start cleaning up. Firefighters were also cleaning streets as of mid afternoon. The Grant wood chapter of the American Red Cross is planning to open a shelter for residents impacted by the flooding. That shelter, at 511 C Ave., is set to open at 4:00 Tuesday afternoon. The fire chief said he didn’t know if any residents would need that assistance, but he thought it was a good idea to have a shelter available in case more rain brings the high water back.
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