Spring storms
High-water warnings issued for area rivers
4/24/2011Flood warnings were posted Saturday for several northwest Ohio rivers because of thunderstorms late Friday and early Saturday, but initial National Weather Service forecasts said flooding would be minor.
The thunderstorms left a few dozen Toledo homes without electricity and flooded basements in several homes. Kristina Pydynowski, meteorologist with AccuWeather Inc., a private forecasting service in State College, Pa., said just over an inch of rain fell at Toledo Express Airport within 7 hours.
The storms, which started in Toledo just after 10 p.m. Friday, were from the same weather system that dropped tornadoes in St. Louis, Ms. Pydynowski said.By midafternoon, the weather service reported the Tiffin River was 1.6 feet above its 11-foot flood stage in Stryker, causing minor flooding. The Tiffin was forecast to rise to a 13.7-foot crest on Tuesday afternoon.
The St. Joseph River, which passes through Williams and Defiance counties, was 0.2 foot above its 12-foot flood stage at a measuring station upstream of Newville, Ind., Saturday afternoon and was forecast to rise slowly to a 13.6-foot crest on Wednesday.
The Maumee River was at its 9-foot flood stage in Waterville and was expected to reach 9.2 feet Sunday afternoon before receding.
All forecast crests assume no additional rainfall, but that may not be a safe assumption.
After a warm, windy day in the Toledo area, forecasters said showers and thunderstorms were likely to return to the region Sunday. The National Weather Service office in Cleveland predicted showers and thunderstorms will continue in the Toledo area into Thursday.