At least six people have died in Indiana after days of storms and record flooding, with the White River peaking in Indianapolis early Sunday morning. The state homeland security department confirmed the deaths, which included a four-year-old boy, two men, and three women, all occurring since the storms began on 11 August. Floodwaters are now beginning to recede in the capital region, but recovery efforts are underway as hundreds of homes remain evacuated and thousands are without power.
Fatalities and Community Response
State homeland security department spokesperson Liz Woods said the victims included a four-year-old boy, two men, and three women. In Jennings county, officials reported the boy was killed on Tuesday when a tree crashed through his bedroom during strong winds. Jennings county deputy chief Cody Low told the local ABC affiliate, "This is obviously unexpected. There’s nothing we can say that is going to make it any better. We’re going to push through this as a community."
Other victims included 19-year-old Matthew Morey, whose body was recovered on Saturday. Delaware county officials said Morey had jumped off a bridge into the rushing waters of the Mississinewa River with friends three days earlier. Family and friends gathered earlier in the week at the bridge to remember the recent high school graduate, who was headed to Purdue University, and warn of the dangers of swollen rivers.
Delaware county officials also recovered the body of 58-year-old Stephanie Sallee and her dog in a cornfield on Saturday, not far from her car. They believe she had been driving on a flooded road when the vehicle was swept away. In a statement shared with local news outlets, her family remembered her as a compassionate and loving person who adored her grandchildren and other young relatives.
White River Crest and Evacuations
In Indianapolis, flooding from the White River peaked early on Sunday morning, with high water levels expected to hold for a few hours before beginning to recede, according to the city public works department. The agency said it would reopen the city’s floodgates on Sunday and that emergency shelters remained open after hundreds of homes along the river and its canals were evacuated. First responders used boats to rescue people stranded by rapidly rising flood waters.
Recovery efforts started in earnest as northern parts of the state began drying out. "I must admit it is a good morning," Christine Altman, president of the Hamilton county board of commissioners, said during a Sunday briefing. "It’s not raining, and the water is receding." She said the county, located just north of Indianapolis, escaped without any loss of life, though officials were assessing whether a significant bridge damaged in the flooding could be repaired or if it needed to be completely replaced.
Statewide Impact and Federal Assistance
Heavy rain and flash flooding were still possible across portions of the central part of the state throughout the day, the National Weather Service (NWS) warned. The NWS urged residents to check river and weather forecasts and "stay out of dangerous, fast moving waters" as heavy rain has led to significant flooding along most rivers and creeks across central Indiana. Roads and bridges across the state have also been seriously damaged or washed out entirely by the powerful rushing waters.
Nearly 130,000 utility customers statewide remained without power by midday Sunday, down from a peak of about 300,000, according to Woods and the online utility tracker PowerOutage.us. Heavy rains have hammered Indiana over the past week, causing rivers to crest and setting new records. The White River crested at more than 24 feet (7.32 meters) in the communities of Anderson and Noblesville, surpassing records set in 1913.
Indianapolis mayor Joe Hogsett said the flooding was the worst the capital city has seen in more than 30 years. Governor Mike Braun’s office said more than 350 evacuations and scores of rescue and welfare checks have occurred elsewhere in the state, including at a senior mobile home community north of Indianapolis. Donald Trump on Saturday approved Braun’s request to the president for federal disaster assistance to help with flooding response and recovery efforts.
The drenching rains and destructive flooding were among the effects of severe storms that have wreaked havoc across the US midwest and beyond in recent days. Tornadoes, heavy rains and flash flooding brought serious damage to communities from Illinois to western Pennsylvania.
