Flood — Butler, Missouri

2017-05-01 to 2017-05-04 · near Poplar Bluff, Butler, Missouri

Event narrative

Major flooding occurred on the Black River as the month began. At the Poplar Bluff river gage, the river crested at 21.96 feet late on the morning of the 1st. This crest was only a few inches below the record crest of 22.15 feet, set in March of 2008. The main levee from Poplar Bluff to the Qulin area was under extreme stress. One section of levee broke in the vicinity of County Road 608, requiring eight houses to be evacuated. The levee was overtopped in more than a dozen spots. The part of the levee protecting Poplar Bluff, including the downtown area, was overtopped in a couple of places. Police and firefighters went door-to-door on the south side of Poplar Bluff advising residents of a levee breach just outside the city limits. Some homes in the flood plain were flooded, mostly in rural areas south of Poplar Bluff. Areas of south central Butler County were evacuated. A total of about 54 homes were damaged, and two were destroyed. About 10 businesses were damaged. A Red Cross shelter at the Black River Coliseum sheltered about 80 residents. There were two fatalities as a result of the river flooding. The first drowning victim was a 69-year-old woman, whose body was recovered from inside her vehicle on May 2 but who actually drowned on April 30. Her vehicle was swept off a county road outside of Harviell. The second drowning involved a 60-year-old man, whose truck was washed off Route 53 into a ditch near County Road 618. Most area schools were closed during the crisis. Grain bins were flooded, though some of the crop was removed before the flooding could damage it. Numerous state and county roads were closed, including Highway 53. Parts of Qulin were flooded. Between Qulin and Neelyville, residents of the Coon Island area were evacuated. In the Neelyville area, about a half dozen or so people were evacuated by boat. Damage to public property alone was estimated at nearly two million dollars.

Wider weather episode

Record or near-record flooding occurred after a succession of thunderstorm complexes dumped heavy rain in late April, bringing three-day rainfall totals up to a foot in isolated locations. A large complex of thunderstorms moved southeast across southeast Missouri during the evening hours of the 29th. During the overnight hours through the early morning of the 30th, an even larger complex of thunderstorms dumped widespread very heavy rain. This complex occurred along the same front, which moved back north as a warm front across southeast Missouri. These storms accelerated rises in area rivers, which were already above flood stage in some cases.

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Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 698410. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.