From staff reports
news@joplinglobe.com
Minor to moderate flooding is forecast for rivers around the region this weekend in the wake of a slow-moving storm system that dumped more than 5 inches of rain on parts of the area Thursday.
Doug Cramer, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service station in Springfield, said late Thursday afternoon that more than 3 inches of rain was reported in Joplin. He said the worst of the rainfall had swung to the north, in a line from Crawford County, Kan., toward Lake of the Ozarks in the central part of Missouri.
“Crawford County has gotten the most,” Cramer said. “I think some areas up there have gotten 5 inches.”
Miami, Okla., received 3.76 inches of rain through Thursday afternoon.
According to National Weather Service stations in Springfield and Tulsa, Okla.:
n Moderate flooding is forecast for the Neosho River near Commerce, Okla. Flood stage is 15 feet, and the river is expected to crest at 22.7 feet early today and fall below flood stage on Monday.
At 23 feet, widespread flooding occurs, according to the weather service. Riverview Park and the Ottawa County Fairgrounds in Miami, as well as Oklahoma Highway 125 south of Miami, are expected to close as the river crests.
n Minor flooding is forecast for the Spring River from Carthage to Baxter Springs, Kan. The flood stage at Carthage is 10 feet, and the river is expected to crest at 13.9 feet early Saturday and fall below flood stage on Sunday. Floodwaters on Thursday were affecting county roads north and west of Carthage, and Kellogg Lake Park had been closed.
At Waco, flood stage on the Spring River is 19 feet. The river is expected to crest at 25.6 feet today and fall below flood stage on Saturday.
The flood stage at Baxter Springs is 14 feet, with the river expected to hit 21.6 feet today and fall below flood stage Sunday morning.
At 21.5 feet, floodwaters cover old Highway 66 south of the Rainbow Bridge.
n Moderate flooding is forecast for the Marmaton River near Nevada. Flood stage is 20 feet, and the river is expected to hit 27.5 feet Saturday, falling below flood stage on Tuesday. At 28 feet, floodwaters can affect U.S. Highway 54.
