The flood warning for the Cottonwood River at Emporia has ended.
The National Weather Service lifted the warning shortly before 6:30 am. The river has dipped to around 18 feet, nearly two feet below the 20-foot flood stage. It crested at 24.2 feet early Wednesday.
Flooding still continues along the Neosho River at Neosho Rapids. The river is at 23.32 feet, above flood stage of 22. The river should go below flood stage by noon Friday. A warning continues until Friday night.
County officials are glad the current forecast is dry for the next week. This will let work resume on gravel roads battered by flooding the past seven weeks.
On KVOE’s Newsmaker segment Wednesday, Lyon County Emergency Management Director Jarrod Fell said the damage was already significant before flooding returned over the weekend.
During KVOE’s 8:05 am newscast Tuesday, County Engineer Chip Woods said his department will have to adjust its project list with the flooding back in place and more repairs coming.
Lyon County has now approved a disaster declaration for the current round of flooding. Fell says this will tie in to President Trump’s approval last week of a major disaster declaration and could lead to more reimbursement dollars coming to the county once the assessment process is finalized and repairs are completed. Fell estimates at least $500,000 in eligible damage to roads, while the city of Emporia estimated hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage to the Wastewater Treatment Plant and the sanitary sewer network along the Cottonwood River last month.
Nearly 30 Lyon County roads and intersections are now closed due to flooding:
*Road A from US Highway 50 to Road 180
*Road B-2 from US Highway 50 to Road 180
*Road B-5 from US Highway 50 to Road 180
*Road G between 160 and 170
*Road H between 140 and 145; between 160 and 165
*1300 and 1400 blocks Road J; J from 30th Avenue (Road 190) to 215
*Road K from 130 to 150; from 190 to 210
*Road M between 140 and 150
*Road R from 150 to 170
*Road T from 130 to 150
*Road 140 between Road H and Kansas Highway 99
*700 block Road 145; 145 from T to W
*Road 150 between Road J and Kansas Highway 99; from P to T
*Road 155 between F-5 and G
*Road 160 from G to J
*Road 190 from K to K-5
*Road 210 from Road K to Kansas Highway 99
*Road 215 from F-5 to H-5; H-5 to J-7
Kansas Highway 99 traffic was down to one lane for about 12 hours Wednesday but is now back to normal flow.
Stay with KVOE and KVOE.com for updates. Click here for prior updates.
