Rain goes away only to be replaced by flooding, fog

As a result of the three-day rain streak, the entrance to Nova Solutions on Fillmore Road was essentially underwater by Thursday evening. More than an inch-and-a-half of rain fell between Wednseday and Thursday afternoon, causing flooding throughout the county.

Banner Graphic/Brand Selvia

On a day in which it finally stopped raining and the temperature reached 60 degrees about 3:30 p.m. before free falling throughout the rest of the day, the big weather story Thursday was flooding and fog.

The rain finally ceased about 1:15 p.m. Thursday after depositing more than three inches on the Greencastle area since Tuesday evening.

Between 3 p.m. Tuesday and 3 p.m. Wednesday, the weather station at Greencastle Middle School measured 1.54 inches of rain, while the period from 3 p.m. Wednesday to 3 p.m. Thursday produced 1.64 inches of rain.

The 3.18 inches of rain since Tuesday represents more than the entire average month of February produces precipitation-wise. That mark, the National Weather Service, notes, is 2.32 inches with an average February also posting 6.5 inches of snowfall as Indiana’s third-snowiest month normally behind January (8.6) and December (6.9).

Of course, the good news is that it was warm enough that all of that precipitation this week fell as rain, not snow, or we might have been up to our waists in white stuff.

Several water rescues were necessary throughout the day across west-central Indiana, including one just before 8 p.m. Thursday on State Road 42, east of Cloverdale near the Putnam-Morgan county line.

In it, an eastbound motorist ran into floodwaters along State Road 42, stalling her 1998 Nissan Sentra before being rescued and taken to the Cloverdale Police Department to wait on a ride from a relative.

Less than two hours later, authorities received the report of another vehicle in the water near that same location.

Earlier in the day, floodwaters were reported on Interstate 70 in Putnam and Clay counties, prompting warnings from Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) officials.

In Putnam County, the problem area was near the Putnamville exit (State Road 243) at the 35-mile marker, while in Clay County, the 18-mile marker westbound near State Road 59, south of Brazil, INDOT crews were investigating water at the overpass.

“The water isn’t deep,” INDOT spokesman Debbie Calder said, noting that regardless, getting “traffic to slow down” was the main issue.

Meanwhile, INDOT said motorists should expect delays and slick driving conditions during Friday morning’s commute as temperatures across most of the state plunged from near 60 degrees to the low teens.

Heavy rain this week has left roads extremely wet. As temperatures drop drastically, flash freezing of water on roads and bridges may cause black ice and hazardous driving conditions.

INDOT crews are on standby to treat roads with deicing materials, but drivers have not been able to pretreat most locations due to the heavy rain. Once the rain stops, INDOT yellow trucks will be out in force to treat roads.