Minnesota has been pounded with heavy rain and torrential rains over the past day, and it isn’t supposed to let up until Sunday. Many residents are being flooded out of their homes and businesses. The Governor of Minnesota, Mark Dayton, has declared a state of emergency in 35 counties after torrential rains caused flash flooding in the Twin Cities area on Thursday. Dayton has also called for the Minnesota National Guard to send 100 soldiers to Koochiching County to help prevent flooding on the Rainy River and Rainy Lake, located in the International Falls area.
When a state of emergency is declared, it opens up many opportunities available that were not before. Also, it gets state agencies more involved in the response to the disaster. The Department of Public Safety is now in full operation and has activated its Emergency Operations Center, which was already partially activated earlier in the week. Emergency Management officials say that they are ramping up the efforts to help all communities across the state that are dealing with high flood waters as well as storm damage.
On Thursday morning, thunderstorms, lightning, and torrential rains raced through the metro area. This caused extensive flooding making roads impassable, and causing a plethora of traffic problems. The National Weather Service put out multiple flood warnings as almost 4 inches fell on the metro area, with more heavy rain on the way.
A director of meteorology stated that Thursday was among the top 10 wettest days in the Twin Cities that is on record, very close to reaching the top 5. Early in the morning a flash flood warning was issued for Hennepin County until 1 P.M. The National Weather Service said that Minnehaha Creek had risen nearly a foot overnight, and has overflowed its banks in some places. The NWS also reported that the levels for the creek had reached the highest they have observed in the last 10 years worth of records kept.
It is always in your best interest to stay updated on the most recent advances in the weather system in your area by tuning in to your local weather authority or The Weather Channel!