Flood — Crittenden, Kentucky

2008-04-04 to 2008-04-06 · near Frances, Crittenden, Kentucky

Event narrative

A young girl drowned in floodwaters on Highway 855 between Frances and Salem shortly before sunrise. The child was a passenger in a vehicle driven by her mother. The vehicle plunged into about eight feet of water that was over the road at a creek crossing. The vehicle immediately began floating, and both the mother and child exited. The mother lost her grip on the child, and the child immediately went under water. A boat was used to locate the child within ten minutes. Rescue workers retrieved the child, who was caught up in debris or tree limbs in about eight feet of water. The child was given CPR and rushed to a local hospital, where she was pronounced dead. The area is known to flood by local residents, and it was marked by an orange high water sign. The mother was new to the area and likely unfamiliar with the flooding problems there. About 5.5 inches of rain had fallen the night before the drowning. Countywide, numerous roads were covered with water. Several roads were closed for a few days, including Highway 120.

Wider weather episode

A warm front moved slowly north across western Kentucky during the afternoon. Large clusters of thunderstorms produced very heavy rain. A cold front moved southeast into the Lower Ohio Valley during the night, preceded by more thunderstorms. These storms produced a report of wind damage and a tornado. Rainfall for the 24-hour period ranged from 2 to 4 inches across most of western Kentucky, with isolated amounts of 4 to 7 inches. The isolated higher amounts were mostly from Madisonville to Marion.

View location on OpenStreetMap → (37.2200, -88.1300)

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 89431. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.