Weather Service warns thunderstorms could cause flooded roads and hazardous driving conditions in Ann Arbor area

Posted on Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 1:31 p.m.

Weather Service warns thunderstorms could cause flooded roads and hazardous driving conditions in Ann Arbor area

By Cindy Heflin

The area outside Fingerle Lumber on South Fifth Avenue in Ann Arbor flooded during Wednesday afternoon's thunderstorms.

Photo courtesy of Rex Roof

Motorists should be on the lookout for flooding on area roadways this afternoon as a heavy line of thunderstorms moves through the Ann Arbor area, the National Weather Service advises.

Rainfall rates of up to an inch an hour could lead to hazardous driving conditions and low visibility, the Weather Service warned.

At 1:25 p.m., a cluster of strong storms was moving along a line from 6 miles north of Dexter to Ann Arbor to 6 miles southeast of Ypsilanti, the Weather Service said.

The thunderstorms could include wind gusts of up to 40 miles per hour.

Comments

csoccer

Thu, Aug 12, 2010 : 4:21 p.m.

Could this be climate change? More erratic weather and more violent storms....

A K P

Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 6:47 p.m.

I wonder how much impact two straight months of billion percent humidity has on area flooding.

Mick52

Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 5:55 p.m.

dading makes a great point. Storm drains clog easily. Today's rain was unusually heavy and the backups may be due to the only the volume, not an infrastructure issue. I was in Houston couple years ago and their storm drains are so big a human could roll into them. They get a lot more rain. Wow, now I see what they mean when they say Fingerle's is in a flood plain. Been in the area 35 yrs, first I have seen that! Oh well, its good for the crops.

Lokalisierung

Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 4:17 p.m.

Wow that's crazy. That was a hard rain, but it didn't even seem that long.

Barb

Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 2:59 p.m.

Malletts Creek is getting more and more scary after big rains. It goes great guns thru my neighborhood at an amazing speed.

Sarah

Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 2:47 p.m.

UM campus flooded, too. We had water coming in through walls and doorways and into offices. Not the first time this season it's happened, either. It's frustrating to wade indoors!

NUXI

Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 2:45 p.m.

Pics from someone at Barracuda's office on Depot St: http://dbergey.posterous.com/barracuda-flood-august-11-2010 Better pic of the street surfers: http://ping.fm/p/hia0C

This time I'm losing my mind

Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 2:30 p.m.

There were some nice lakes around the Y on Washington and Huron this afternoon. But "Lake Felch" was the biggest and deepest I saw as I tried to find a way across Allen Creek.

Jeannette Gutierrez

Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 2:30 p.m.

Mulholland Street storm cover blew AGAIN. This will be at least the third, if not fourth time, this summer alone. Unbelievable. http://www.flickr.com/photos/jeannettegutierrez/4883184796/ This used to happen only every few years, and now it's happening almost every time there is a storm. I'm in agreement with the commenter above. Ann Arbor, get your act together and do something about neighborhood flooding. And telling us that, all of a sudden, we're "in a flood plain" and letting us drown is not the answer. My house has been here for 100 years, and I have been here for 25... Flooding never used to be the problem it is now! I've lived here, and I know. It's not the location, it's something else-- over development plus global warming plus poor stormwater management?-- and those of us in lower lying areas are paying the price. Not fair. If my property is now a designated city spillway, can the city buy me out, or at least reduce my taxes?

dading dont delete me bro

Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 1:54 p.m.

macncheese, check out the drains along the curb. i live in ypsilanti and have on numerous times cleaned the leaves, trash, and debris that have accummulated in the drain in front of my house. problem cleaned, problems solved.

cleanup

Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 1:54 p.m.

Interesting that there was no mention in Ann Arbor.com of yesterday's bad flooding on Plymouth Rd. near Cafe Marie. Water was gushing over the curb and cars were trying to turn around. And it wasn't raining.

dading dont delete me bro

Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 1:10 p.m.

could...

81wolverine

Wed, Aug 11, 2010 : 1:03 p.m.

It got pretty dark at our house just SW of Ann Arbor, with some pretty gusty winds. Nice to have some rain though. Hopefully, we won't get any flooding or power outages out of this.