AP

Heavy rain causing flooding, evacuations in Mississippi

Aug 24, 2022, 12:28 PM | Updated: 3:55 pm

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Heavy rain and flash floods drenched Mississippi, prompting rescue operations, closures and evacuations Wednesday including dozens of residents at a nursing home in the central part of the state.

Rain has pummeled the central and southern parts of the state for the last three days. In statements posted to Twitter, the National Weather Service said flash flood warnings were in effect for several areas from Jackson, the state capital, to Meridian and southward to Laurel and Prentiss, with numerous reports of flooding Wednesday.

Rankin County Sheriff Bryan Bailey said 42 residents of the Peach Tree Village nursing home in Brandon had been moved to a safe room until conditions improve, WLBT-TV reported.

Courtney Ingle, whose grandmother lives at the nursing home, told The Associated Press she called the facility after her husband saw fire trucks racing in its direction. The call would not connect. When she called her grandmother’s cellphone, a nurse answered and said residents were being evacuated.

Ingle received confirmation about 30 minutes after she first called her grandmother that residents had reached the safe room. She said firefighters and nurses were both involved in the evacuation.

“This is some straight-up local superhero-type stuff,” Ingle said. “What it boils down to is all the stuff they lost is replaceable. The 42 people they rescued are not.”

First responders in the central Mississippi county also said they were working to rescue people from their homes amid Wednesday’s downpour. Tammy Boykin, a Brandon resident, told the news station she had never seen flooding so severe in the eight years she has lived in the area. Bailey said the county had deployed one airboat, two regular rescue boats, and three high water rescue vehicles.

Leaders with the Canton Public School District in neighboring Madison County announced schools would close early Wednesday due to the flooding and impassable roads.

There have also been several car crashes reported, many due to hydroplaning, according to WAPT-TV. A Jackson man told the news station he became stranded after his car stalled on a flooded street. He said he did not realize the road he was driving on was flooded until it was too late. He sat atop his car and waited until first responders arrived.

The Neshoba County Fairgrounds, home to an annual festival and cabins dating back to 1889, was flooded Wednesday morning.

In south Mississippi, heavy rains led to flooding along area rivers, WLOX-TV reported.

The National Weather Service said it expects up to 2 inches (5 centimeters) of additional rainfall in central Mississippi through this evening. The heaviest rainfall has moved off to the east but light rain is still expected, the service said.

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

AP

Lead water pipes pulled from underneath the street are seen in Newark, N.J., Oct. 21, 2021. (AP Pho...

Associated Press

Biden to require cities to replace harmful lead pipes within 10 years

The Biden administration has previously said it wants all of the nation's roughly 9 million lead pipes to be removed, and rapidly.

4 days ago

Facebook's Meta logo sign is seen at the company headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif., on, Oct. 28, 2...

Associated Press

Meta shuts down thousands of fake Facebook accounts that were primed to polarize voters ahead of 2024

Meta said it removed 4789 Facebook accounts in China that targeted the United States before next year’s election.

4 days ago

A demonstrator in Tel Aviv holds a sign calling for a cease-fire in the Hamas-Israel war on Nov. 21...

Associated Press

Hamas releases a third group of hostages as part of truce, and says it will seek to extend the deal

The fragile cease-fire between Israel and Hamas was back on track Sunday as the first American was released under a four-day truce.

9 days ago

Men look over the site of a deadly explosion at Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, Wednesday, Oct. 18, ...

Associated Press

New AP analysis of last month’s deadly Gaza hospital explosion rules out widely cited video

The Associated Press is publishing an updated visual analysis of the deadly Oct. 17 explosion at Gaza's Al-Ahli Hospital.

12 days ago

Peggy Simpson holds a photograph of law enforcement carrying Lee Harvey Oswald's gun through a hall...

Associated Press

JFK assassination remembered 60 years later by surviving witnesses to history, including AP reporter

Peggy Simpson is among the last surviving witnesses who are sharing their stories as the nation marks the 60th anniversary.

12 days ago

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, chairs the weekly cabinet meeting in Jerusalem, Sunday, ...

Associated Press

Israeli Cabinet approves cease-fire with Hamas; deal includes release of 50 hostages

Israel’s Cabinet on Wednesday approved a cease-fire deal with the Hamas militant group that would bring a temporary halt to a devastating war.

13 days ago

Sponsored Articles

Follow @KTAR923...

West Hunsaker at Morris Hall supports Make-A-Wish Foundation in Arizona

KTAR's Community Spotlight this month focuses on Morris Hall and its commitment to supporting the Make-A-Wish Foundation in Arizona.

...

Midwestern University

Midwestern University: innovating Arizona health care education

Midwestern University’s Glendale Campus near Loop 101 and 59th Avenue is an established leader in health care education and one of Arizona’s largest and most valuable health care resources.

...

SCHWARTZ LASER EYE CENTER

Key dates for Arizona sports fans to look forward to this fall

Fall brings new beginnings in different ways for Arizona’s professional sports teams like the Cardinals and Coyotes.

Heavy rain causing flooding, evacuations in Mississippi