Flood — Kent, Michigan

2004-05-21 to 2004-05-23 · Kent, Michigan

Wider weather episode

The biggest and longest duration flooding event in the past ten to twenty years occurred across southwestern and south central lower Michigan from May 20th through the third of June. Flooding in mid May resulted in very high river levels and the ground was saturated on the 20th. Numerous thunderstorm complexes and areas of heavy rainfall developed repeatedly in the vicinity of a quasi stationary frontal boundary draped across southern lower Michigan. The heaviest rain fell on Saturday, May 22nd, when over two inches of rain fell over most of the area. Total rainfall over the Grand River basin from May 20th through June 3rd varied from four to as much as seven inches.The Grand Rapids office of the National Weather Service issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook as early early Wednesday morning, May 19th, to mention the threat of flooding. A hydrologic outlook was issued on May 20th to further address the potential for widespread flooding. A flood watch was issued for the entire area on Friday, May 21st. Flood warnings were issued for the southern half of our area at 12:10 a.m. EDT Saturday May 22nd, and for all of our area at 4:10 a.m. EDT Sunday May 23rd through 12 a.m. EDT May 24th. The following is a summary of peak river crests from across our Hydrological Service Area (HSA):The Grand River in Lansing crested at 12.87 feet at 12 a.m. EDT on 5/24. Flood Stage is 11 feet. It was the 13th highest crest in history at that location. The Red Cedar River in East Lansing crested at 7.48 feet at 2 p.m. EDT on 5/24. Flood stage is 7 feet. It was the 34th highest crest at that location. The Grand River in Portland crested at 12.66 feet at noon on 5/24. Flood stage is 12 feet. It was the 9th highest crest in history. The Looking Glass River at Eagle crested at 7.42 feet at 8 a.m. on 5/24. Flood stage is 6 feet. It was the 8th highest crest in history. The Maple River at Maple Rapids crested at 10.42 feet at 10 a.m. on 5/24. Flood stage is 9 feet. It was historically the 5th highest crest . The Grand River at Ionia crested at 23.41 feet at 10 a.m. on 5/25. Flood stage is 21 feet. It was the 8th highest historical crest. The Flat River in Smyrna crested at 6 feet at 2 p.m. on 5/25, which is also at flood stage. It was the 22nd highest crest in history. The Grand River at Lowell crested at 17.17 feet at 7 a.m. on 5/26. Flood stage is 15 feet. It was the 13th highest crest in history. The Thornapple River at Hastings crested at 9.74 feet at 8 a.m. on 5/25. Flood stage is 7 feet. It was historically the 3rd highest crest. The Thornapple River at Caledonia crested at 11.23 feet at 11 a.m. on 5/26. Flood stage is 10 feet. It was the 3rd highest crest in history. The Grand River at Ada crested at 21.56 feet at 3 p.m. on 5/26. Flood stage is 20 feet. It was the 2nd highest historical crest there. The Grand River at Comstock Park crested at 16.6 feet at 8 a.m. on 5/27. Flood stage is 12 feet. It was the 4th highest crest in history. The Grand River at Grand Rapids crested at 19.54 feet at 2 p.m. on 5/27, and flood stage there is 18 feet. It was the 7th highest crest in history. The Grand River at Robinson township crested at 16.2 feet at 4 p.m. on 5/28. Flood stage is 13.3. feet. It was the 2nd highest historical crest. The Muskegon River at Newaygo crested at 12.49 feet at 4 p.m. on 5/24. Flood stage is 11 feet. It was the 6th highest crest in history. Finally, the Kalamazoo river at Fennville crested at 12.2 feet at 8 a.m. on 5/28. Flood stage is 12 feet. It was historically the 23rd highest crest on record at that location. Here are some daily flooding headlines from the period from May 22nd through June 4th:May 22nd: Urban flooding was reported in the city of Grand Rapids. A mudslide from a housing development covered N. Division Avenue near Coldbrook Street in Grand Rapids. Ball Avenue and Knapp Street NE in Grand Rapids were covered with two feet of water. The Woodward Elementary School in Jackson county was flooded and damage there was estimated at $200,000. Six homes were flooded in Nashville on Water street along the Thornapple River, and one garage had over 3 feet of water in it. May 23rd: The Lansing Potter Park Zoo was closed due to flooding and several animals were moved to higher ground (it remained closed for four days). Numerous roads were flooded in Eaton and Clinton counties. Okemos road and Grand River road were closed due to flooding near Lansing. A house along Airport road near Dewitt ws flooded up to it's foundation from the Looking Glass River. Numerous flooded basements were reported in Lansing, and three roads were closed in Montcalm county, where many roads had washed out sections. The Leslie public school district in Ingham county reported flood damage in excess of $200,000. Finally, the Michigan State University intramural west building basement was flooded. May 24th: Dozens of roads were reported to be either underwater or washed out in Barry and Eaton counties. The Maple Valley schools were closed due to flooded and damaged roads. Sandbagging of homes occurrred in Nashville along the Thornapple River, where several homes were evacuated. Ionia county declared a state of emergency - water levels along the Grand River where at their highest levels in 44 years. Sandbagging also occurred along Steele street in Ionia to protect businesses, and it also occurred in Muir and Lyons to protect homes and roads. The city of Grand Rapids received 115 reports of flooded basements from Saturday through Sunday. Quarry road and two homes were flooded from the Grand River near Ionia. The Lyons dam on the Grand River suffered from erosion from flooding and the local community was sandbagging to protect the dam. Several homes and businesses in Lyons flooded and portions of Elizabeth, Superior and Railroad streets in the city of Lyons were also flooded. May 25th: The parking lots of several businesses and offices were flooded in Ionia, with water up to the doors of the businesses and offices. There were 27 road closures in Eaton county, 35 in Ionia county, 8 in Ingham county, 7 in Clinton county and 1 in Lansing due to flooding. May 26th: The Lyons dam did not break but was damaged by high water flows. 25 stretches of roads in Ionia county remained closed. 10,000 sandbags were stacked in the city of Ionia to stave off flooding. The American Red Cross estimated that more than 180 homes were damaged in Barry county alone due to flooding from the Thornapple River. Wood TV 8 in Grand Rapids reported that over 250 homes were damaged. The Grand River in Lowell reaches it's highest level in a half a century, and 1,500 sandbags were used in Lowell to combat the flooding. Residents were evacuated from homes on Elmdale along the Grand River in Grand Rapids, and two men were rescued from the Grand River by a hovercraft when their boat capsized. May 27th: 48 homes in Robinson township were affected by flood waters, and some had as much as 3 feet of water in them. Around 250 homes in Kent county were affected by flooding. In Ionia county, flooding of 20 homes and 10 businesses in the city of Ionia occurred and 136 homes in Ionia and Easton townships were affected by flooding, with estimated damages of $350,000. A half a mile section of M-100 between Pottersville and Grand Ledge was closed for almost six days because of flooding. May 28th: Ten homes along the Muskegon River near Newaygo were flooded.June 1st: Flood damages were estimated at 2.5 million dollars in Robinson township! Seven homes in the Vanlopik and Limberlost subdivisions experienced major flood damage. Kent county estimated damages in excess of $370,000 due to flooding. June 4th: Governor Granholm issued a disaster declaration for 24 counties in Michigan. That list included Barry, Ingham, Ionia, Jackson, Kent, Mecosta, Newaygo, Ottawa and Van Buren counties. President George Bush supported the governor's declaration for 19 of the 24 counties and federal disaster relief was made available to Barry, Ingham, Ionia, Jackson, Kent, Mecosta and Ottawa counties. It was the wettest May on record in Lansing and Muskegon and the third wettest May on record in Grand Rapids. 9.29" of rain fell in Grand Rapids for the month, which is 5.94" above normal. 10.44" of rain fell in Lansing, which 7.73 inches above normal there. 9.59" of rain fell in Muskegon, which is 6.64 inches above normal. When it was all said and done with, approximately 500 homes were flooded, three dams were damaged, two schools were flooded, one state university building had flooding problems, and a zoo was flooded and closed for four days. The monetary estimate of flood damages incurred is in the millions of dollars. However, there was no loss of life due to all of the flooding.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 5411097. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.