Heavy Rains Flood States in the South and West of the United States
March 11, 2016
Very heavy rainfall developed in some Southern States during the afternoon of March 9. By the morning of March 10, some areas had received More than 20 inches (53 centimeters) of rain. Credit: NWS/NOAA
Heavy storms in the South and West of the United States have led to massive flooding. Areas of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas have all experienced flash floods that began March 9. As of March 10th, parts of Arkansas had received as much as 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain, parts of Texas got as much as 12 inches (30 centimeters), the high rain total in Arkansas was 13.5 inches (34.3 centimeters), and some parts of Louisiana were drenched with 20.97 inches (53.2 centimeters) of rain. By March 11, thousands of homes have been evacuated and five people have been killed in the flooding. Hundreds of people in Louisiana had to be rescued from floodwaters by boat and helicopter.
This situation is expected to worsen as heavy rains are predicted for these states through Saturday, March 12. On the Sabine River, which borders Texas and Louisiana, flooding is expected to reach levels not seen since 1884. Dozens of roads and interstate highways have heel closed due to flooding.
These storms come on top of severe weather in the South just a few weeks earlier. On February 18, around 20 tornadoes touched down in the Southern States. A few days later, over February 23-24, more serious storms brought more than 60 tornadoes over the two days. Unusually warm spring temperatures, which can be attributed at least in part to an El Nino, have likely fed these spring storms.
