Heavy rains lead to flooding issues across the county
A Flash Flood Warning was issued Thursday for many portions of the St. Louis area, including Monroe and St. Clair counties, as heavy rains hammered the region throughout the morning into the afternoon.
Much of the county received four inches or more of rainfall before it stopped Thursday evening.
The Waterloo Fire Department responded to a report of a truck submerged up to its windows in water north of 7725 Deer Hill Road around 3 p.m. The vehicle was not occupied. That portion of roadway was completely covered in water late Thursday afternoon.
Columbia and Waterloo fire personnel then assisted police in the area of Bluff Road and HH Road south of Hanover Road, after a female was stranded in her car in high water. The woman was safely removed from her car by Don Dietz, but officials closed down that area of roadway due to the rapidly rising water.
The Columbia Fire Department responded to Route 158 in the area of Farmer’s Inn near Millstadt for a report of a car partially submerged in water around 9 p.m. Thursday. The vehicle’s occupant was able to exit the car and wait on the roof for help to arrive.
High water was also reported late Thursday morning on Front Street and South Library Street in Waterloo, as well as other city streets. The Waterloo Fire Department was paged out around noon Thursday for a reported smell of burning wires and a flooded basement at 209 S. Moore Street.
The main road into Lakeview Park in Waterloo was also flooded most of the day Thursday. Neighbors in that area reported that this is a rare occurrence.
“In the 14 years we have lived here, I have never seen it flood over the road,” reports Rich Etling at 1404 Lakeview Drive.
This truck was nearly submerged in high water in the area of 7725 Deer Hill Road around 3 p.m. Thursday. Police, fire and EMS personnel were called to the scene, but it was determined nobody was in or near the vehicle. (Corey Saathoff photo)Reports also came in of a vehicle stuck near the Walgreens in Columbia around noon, as well as high water by the old Video Exchange off Route 3 near Valmeyer Road in Columbia.
A Monroe County Sheriff’s Department deputy reported a large patch of standing water near a bridge on HH Road around the area of D Road shortly after 2 p.m.
Valmeyer Road in Columbia was reported as impassable shortly after noon, with other flooding reports on Quarry Road and a fast rising creek on Rueck Road. Palmer Creek was flooding as well.
In Valmeyer, water and debris was reported on Woodland Ridge and on Valmeyer Highway 156 by Fountain Creek.
In Maeystown, Brandt Road was closed due to flooding. A road district crew was also notified police of a high water situation at the bridge on Maeystown Road at Bluff Road around 1 p.m.
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This is the scene from outside of the RT headquarters, with the drains flooding on Waterloo’s Main Street. (Teryn Schaefer photo) A close-up of the drainage flooding on Waterloo Main Street. (Teryn Schaefer photo)
