Flash Flood — Bartholomew, Indiana

2008-06-07 · near Nortonsburg, Bartholomew, Indiana

Event narrative

A man was driving home from work on Saturday June 7th on County Road 550 North near County Road 475 East when the flooded Haw Creek pushed his vehicle about 300 yards off the road. He was advised to stay in his vehicle, however he tried to walk away. He drowned around 1230 EST on June 7th after he tried to walk back to dry land. The flood waters swept the man downstream. His body was found on Monday June 9th at around 1615 EST in a creek bank near County Road 450 North.

Wider weather episode

Massive and historic flash flooding struck central Indiana. The Great Flood of June 2008 was one of Indiana's costliest natural disasters. Major roads and interstates flooded. Heavy rainfall on May 30th allowed streams and rivers to rise. Additional heavy rainfall on the 3rd and the 4th added to these high levels. Severe weather brought heavy rainfall on the 6th as well. The stage was set for historic flooding in portions of central and southern Indiana. The storms on the 6th exacerbated the situation by laying down a boundary in southern Illinois and southern Indiana. A moist southerly low level jet rode over this boundary for more than 12 hours continually generating showers and thunderstorms. Rainfall of two to nearly eleven inches fell across portions of central and southern Indiana. The impact of the rain was immediate with widespread flash flooding occurring.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (39.2848, -85.8226)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 120494. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.