The catalyst was a slow-moving weather system that deluged the South with record rainfall, causing flash floods that stranded residents, washed out roads, derailed a train, washed into homes and forced numerous rescues. The rainfall prompted the National Weather Service to issue a “Flood Emergency” Wednesday for nearly 300,000 people in Jackson and nearby communities. Accumulating rain quickly led to flooding in southern Mississippi and Alabama, according to CNN meteorologist Brandon Miller. “Once the current round of storms dissipate tonight, the threat really diminishes,” Miller added. While some showers and afternoon thunderstorms remain in the forecast for the next few days, coverage and intensity compared to previous days is significantly lower. Nearly 3 feet of water from a nearby creek rushed into the nursing home, forcing residents to scramble to higher ground, according to Brandon Mayor Butch Lee. “We can replace things, but people are out and that’s a good thing,” John Bilbro, a manager at Peach Tree Village, told CNN affiliate WAPT. Volunteers were seen rushing out of the nursing home carrying wheelchairs and walkers. Rankin County Sheriff Gary Windham “has seen water rise in this area before, but not like this,” he told WAPT. About 17 miles away, more than 100 children and 15 employees had to be rescued from the Railroad Center Day Care in Florence due to rapidly rising waters, according to the Rankin County Sheriff’s Office. The children, some of whom were picked up by local police and day care staff, were taken to a school bus and high water rescue vehicles that maneuvered through the flood. Heavy rain on Wednesday, combined with already saturated ground, led to flooding in Mississippi. And it came as Dallas recovers from earlier flooding and heavy rains that swept away vehicles and led to dozens of high-water rescues. Jackson received more than 8.5 inches Tuesday through Wednesday, and some areas of Mississippi received more. Jackson saw 5.05 inches on Wednesday alone, making it the wettest August day on record for the city. And Jackson set a record for the wettest August on record with seven days left in the month — 11.57 inches, breaking the previous mark of 11.51 inches set in 2008. Although rainfall is not expected to be as heavy or widespread Thursday as it has been over the past two days, more than 5.5 million people were still affected by flooding Thursday morning from East Texas to Alabama — including Jackson and southern half of Mississippi, the weather service said. . Some locations in this area could see 2-4 inches, and with the ground already saturated, more flooding is possible.
Roads bend, train derails under heavy rains
The flooding caused widespread road closures and road damage across the region. In Newton County, Highway 489 buckled, creating a gaping hole into which a truck appeared to have fallen. “Highway completely washed out due to flooding,” the Mississippi Highway Patrol tweeted Wednesday afternoon. The weather service had warned residents not to drive on flooded roads, saying even a foot of water could wash away a small vehicle. “If you can’t see the road, you have no idea if it’s still under water. The water can collapse the road bed, leaving nothing underwater,” the weather service warned. As heavy rains lashed the area, the ground gave way under some tracks in Brandon and two pressurized train cars carrying carbon dioxide detached from a train and rolled into a 20-foot ditch, the mayor said. Brandon officials said the derailment did not pose a danger to nearby neighborhoods. There were also many reports of rushing water into homes and businesses. “The only thing I got is the stuff I’m dealing with now. The rest of my stuff is all messed up,” Carthage resident SL Wilder told WLBT. “I’ve never seen anything like this and I’ve been here 21 years,” another Carthage resident, Abraham Evans, told the station. Correction: An earlier version of this story misspelled the name of John Bilbro, an administrator at Peach Tree Village, and the name of the assisted living facility. CNN’s Caitlin Kaiser, Amanda Musa, Dave Hennen and Jamiel Lynch contributed to this report.
