Flood in Saline County, Kansas

Heavy rains over several days from intense thunderstorms caused significant river flooding throughout the county. The hardest hit area was Salina where the Smoky Hill River and the Mulberry Creek combined to cause nearly 5 million dollars in damage. According the Salina Journal, 239 structures had minor flood damage, ranging from a few inches of water in basements to as much as 6 feet of water in basements. 18 structures sustained some structural damage and 9 structures were destroyed. There was also about 1.75 million dollars in damage to public roads bridges and structures. The Mulberry Creek crested at 27.22 feet late in the evening on May 7th. The Smoky Hill River crested at 20.99 feet at Mentor on the evening of May 8th. At New Cambria on the Smoky Hill River, the crested during the afternoon hours of May 7th.

A powerful but slow moving storm system that brought numerous tornadoes to Central and Southwest Kansas also brought significant flooding to parts of Central Kansas. The storms that produced the tornadoes on May 4th-5th brought with them very heavy rain. More storms tracked over nearly the same places on May 5th and into May 6th which when added to the rain from the previous night caused significant flash flooding and eventually record river flooding at Haven in Reno County. Moderate river flooding also occurred along the Mulberry Creek in Salina and the Smoky Hill River at Mentor and New Cambria.