Flood — Crawford, Ohio

2011-02-28 · near Bucyrus, Crawford, Ohio

Event narrative

Heavy rain and rapid snow melt led to a rapid rise in the Sandusky River at Bucyrus, which reached a 100 year crest of 10.86 feet. The only official rainfall observation was in Galion where 2.38 was reported. Six to ten inches of heavy snow was on the ground at the onset of the rain. This snow rapidly melted as temperatures warmed into the 50s on the 28th. Up to an additional inch of water equivalent rainfall was released from the melted snow. Several people had be rescued from homes and vehicles as the water came up. About 30 homes in Bucyrus were flooded as the Sandusky River came out of banks. Countyline Road was one of the most affected areas where at least a dozen homes were damaged. Several dozen new cars were destroyed as flood waters inundated a car dealership.

Wider weather episode

A strong area of low pressure moved northeast across Ohio on February 28th. Heavy rain fell over northern Ohio in association with this low. Rainfall totals of between one and three inches were reported. Up to ten inches of heavy snow was one the ground at daybreak on the 27th. Temperatures warmed into the 40s on the 27th and eventually reached the 50s on the 28th. This resulted in a rapid snow melt that released up to another inch of liquid equivalent rainfall. The snow melt and the rain combined to create widespread flooding. Rapid rises in area streams and rivers occurred with near record crests eventually reported at some river locations. Some flash flooding was also reported. A woman was killed near Norwalk after her car was swept off of the road by flood waters. Dozens of water rescues were reported and hundreds of people had to be evacuated from their homes. Dozens of roads had be closed because of flooding and washouts were reported in several counties. Over a thousand homes were damaged by flooding. Damage estimates from northern Ohio topped $30 million for this event.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (40.8716, -83.0747)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 286974. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.