The footage taken by a drone of the Ohio River flooding has caught the attention of a lot of people, but most obviously those that live in and around the surrounding areas. Due to excessive rain and possibly snows melting the Ohio River has swollen to such a degree that it has risen about eight feet above the flood level. This has had a huge effect upon the surrounding towns that border the river and has even closed down Ohio University for classes. A good number of residential basements have flooded as well and sewage has backed up as a result of the flooding. Waterfront business have had to close down and there’s no telling just how bad the damages will be at this point.
A series of dry days is what residents are hoping for the most but it’s been expected to rain on and off, nothing heavy, but nothing that will help the river to finally recede back to where it needs to be. Pumps have been working tirelessly to take as much water from the river as possible and still have not made that much of dent, though they’ve managed to pump about 21 million gallons of water from the river at this point. You would almost think that this would be enough to reach a desired level, but with the size of the Ohio River you can easily imagine that’s not going to cut it. The flooding is going to require a bit more to finally take the river back into its banks and allow the damage to be fully assessed.
Many people that live by rivers that are known to swell and flood occasionally tend to have at least some idea of the frequency at which the river does flood and can better prepare for it when it happens. Of course there are those that might just move to the area and don’t know well enough just what will happen during a snow melt or a rainy season and are thus unprepared. It’s easy to say that when you live by a river that you should always be prepared, but given that a river can flood without warning at times it’s kind of hard to predict these things. One very useful clue is to search the town’s history and see when the river last flooded, particularly if you live or work anywhere close to the water. While it’s not one hundred percent accurate this could tell you just how often it’s been known to flood and what to look for when it does.
Hopefully with enough dry days coming the Ohio River will finally find its way back to its original course and the flood waters will receded and dry up. There’s going to be a lot of damage that has to be taken into account and homes that might need to be gutted or at least deep-cleaned before they’re habitable again. Businesses that were in the path of the flood should hopefully be insured, otherwise such damage is a big loss to take.
Follow Us
