UPDATE: Latest Flooding Information

UPDATE: It appears that flooding will spare the city of New Cambria–for now.

Hannah Stambaugh with the Saline County Emergency Management tells KSAL News that as of 6 p.m. on Tuesday night, the shelter setup for New Cambria residents was put on standby as no residents required sheltering at this time.

Late Monday, the Mayor of New Cambria, Mack Villalpando, advised residents to a voluntary evacuation due to the Smoky Hill and Saline Rivers continuing to rise–threatening the northeastern Saline County community.

Displaced residents could take up shelter at the First Covenant Church, 2625 Magnolia in Salina, while displaced pets found shelter at the Saline County Expo Center, 900 Greeley.

While the threat to the community isn’t as dire as it was 24 hours ago, she still says the shelter can be put back in operation if needed overnight.

Central Kansas will finally dry out over the next 18-24 hours as no more rain is expected overnight into Wednesday morning. Wednesday’s forecast features sunny skies with temperatures reaching in to the mid-70s. However, rain moves back in to the forecast for Wednesday night in to Thursday with chances for rain leading up through the weekend.

Even with the fair conditions expected for Wednesday, the Saline County Emergency Management expects the Smoky Hill River, Saline River and Mulberry Creek to all crest in the afternoon on Wednesday. Some will approach record highs.

Stambaugh is reminding residents if they do have flooding threats approach their property overnight Tuesday in to Wednesday to contact the Salina Police Department at 785-826-7210 or Saline County Emergency Management at 785-826-6511.

Information on this flood event has been posted to a separate webpage. Please visit:  http://www.salina-ks.gov/salinecountyflood?fbclid=IwAR0onFJA32wbUTRuyRMPy9yO948yD6iylCpAeJvKsSVVlkxzCsXpdIDCfRo for updated information as well as the Saline County and City of Salina’s Facebook pages.

A map of current road closures for the City of Salina and Saline County can be found at:  http://salina-ks.maps.arcgis.com/apps/View/index.html?appid=30d9fb5375b240d083913371702fb75a


ORIGINAL: With record flooding a possibility, residents of a Saline County community are urged to voluntarily evacuate.

New Cambria Mayor Mack Villalpando said via social media that it has been requested he advise the residents of New Cambria to voluntarily  evacuation as the power will be shut off while crews can still get in there to do it.

The State Emergency Management Office and Saline County Emergency Management recommend an evacuation of the city for up to 48 hours. It is anticipated rising water will get 2 to 3 feet higher than it was in the 1993 flood.

  • A shelter has been set up for residents who wish to evacuate at the First Covenant Church located at 2625 E. Magnolia Rd.
  • Officials are working on getting a separate shelter set up for household pets and will release that location as soon as the shelter is up and operational.
  • Power outages can be expected with rising flood waters.
  • A pallet of sand bags will be delivered Tuesday morning.  Information will be released later on the location of distribution.
  • CodeRED Emergency Notifications have been sent to residents in New Cambria and those in the Northern end of Salina regarding the potential conditions and requesting for residents to make proper plans now in anticipation of the rising flood waters.
  • Information on closed roads and additional emergency information will be released to the media as well as posted on the Saline County and City of Salina’s Facebook site.

Saline County faces the potential for record flooding along Mulberry Creek near Salina and the Smoky Hill River near New Cambria.  The Chairman of the Board of County Commissioners has signed a Disaster Declaration in anticipation of the flooding.  Here is the most current information on the predictions:

Mulberry Creek:  Cresting of the river at 27.8 feet is expected to occur Tuesday, May 21st around noon.  At 27.8 feet, Roads flood up to 3 ft of water in northern Salina, mostly around Stimmel Road and south from 9th Street to Ohio Street. Within that area, expect over 200 homes and businesses to become flooded. Other flooding may occur north of I-70 from 9th Street to Ohio Street. The westbound entrance ramp onto I-70 from 9th Street will most likely be flooded.

Smoky Hill River near New Cambria:  Major flooding is expected the afternoon of Tuesday, May 21st with a projected crest at 34 feet.  At 33 feet, Expect roads surrounding and within the city of New Cambria to be flooded and along with roads in the vicinity of the river. In addition, expect widespread flooding of low-lying areas.

With the projections, we are encouraging residents to make appropriate plans now to be prepared to evacuate flood prone areas if conditions warrant.  City and County staff are working on resource and operations plans in anticipation of this event.  Here are key points for residents to be aware of:

Residents can sign up for CodeRED by following this link:  https://public.coderedweb.com/CNE/en-US/BF57FD4A9C2D

 

Water flows over east North Street.

 

 

Flooding at Thomas Park