Flash Flood — Sumner, Kansas

2019-05-08 · near Wellington, Sumner, Kansas

Event narrative

Interstate 35 or the Kansas Turnpike was closed due the Slate Creek reaching record levels and overflowing the highway at mile marker 21. The interstate was closed for hours, as crews waited for the water to recede and repair work to occur. Traffic was diverted at the Wellington exit and had to use an alternate until it reached the Kansas Oklahoma line. The Kansas Turnpike Authority said that closing that long of a stretch of the Turnpike had not occurred in 30 years.

Wider weather episode

A stalled frontal boundary was draped across portions of Kansas during the day on May 7th, 2019 ahead of an approaching storm system. Widespread showers and thunderstorms with very heavy rainfall developed across the area. These storms inundated areas that were already saturated from recent rainfall resulting in widespread flooding across south central Kansas.

Significant flash flooding occurred during the evening and overnight of May 7th, 2019 into the early morning hours of May 8th. The most significant flash flooding occurred during the early morning hours of May 8th, when areas southeast of Wichita picked up between seven and ten inches of rainfall in a 24 hour period. Numerous water rescues took place across Mulvane, Augusta, Wellington and Rose Hill. In addition, several miles of the Kansas Turnpike was closed south of Mulvane due to the Slate Creek reaching record levels. Closing this much of the Kansas Turnpike due to flooding hasn't happened in over 30 years.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (37.2217, -97.3460)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 827116. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.