SEYMOUR, Ind. (AP) _ Major flooding that could last weeks is ahead for parts of southern Indiana this week, aggravated by up to 6 inches of rain falling on already saturated ground and forecasts for up to 6 inches more in coming days, the National Weather Service said Sunday.
Storms dumped up to 6 inches of rain in the area Friday through Sunday morning, the weather service said. It said rainfall totals of 3-6 inches are possible through Wednesday.
Skies were mostly overcast around Indiana Sunday evening, with scattered rain in some areas.
The city of Seymour was at the center of the storm Saturday, with high winds that knocked down trees, cut power and damaged homes.
Some rivers already are above flood stage, and levels are expected to rise in a number of locations.
A man who drove around a barricade had to be rescued from his sinking car in Jackson County on Sunday afternoon, according to Indiana Conservation Officers spokesman Nathan Berry.
Officers used an air boat to pull Mike Fish, 57, of Medora from the vehicle drifting into the White River. The site is about 30 miles south of Indianapolis.
“Water was to the bottom of the windows of the car, and Fish was submerged to above the waist,” Berry said. He said Fish could face a variety of charges.
The White and East Fork White rivers in southern Indiana had “very significant flooding” Sunday. It was 8.4 feet over flood stage and rising near Petersburg on Sunday night.
On the East Fork White River, the water was 6.7 feet over flood stage at Shoals on Sunday evening and expected to crest at 12 feet over flood stage on Tuesday, the weather service said.
“Significant flooding” also is expected along the Wabash River in western Indiana, the weather service said.
“Areas that will be impacted include Edwardsport, Newberry, Elnora, Seymour, Bedford, Shoals, Petersburg, Hazleton, Mount Carmel and New Harmony,” the weather service said. “Flooding in portions of southwest Indiana may last more than three weeks.”
A factor in the flooding has been the wet weather going back two months, the weather service said.
“From Feb. 23 through March 14, Evansville received 8.31 inches of rain,” it said. That left then ground saturated and the rivers already brimming when the latest downpours came.
Part of Indiana 157 in Greene County between Bloomfield and Worthington has been closed since Thursday because of high water, The Herald Times of Bloomington reported. Officials in Morgan and Owen counties said some county roads were covered in water.
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