Catastrophic flash flooding has turned parts of southeast Missouri into a disaster zone, and the threat is not over. Slow-moving thunderstorms parked over Reynolds and Iron counties overnight into Friday and dumped what the National Weather Service called a 1-in-1,000-year rainfall, with 8 to 12 inches falling in a matter of hours. The Black River near Lesterville rose roughly 8 feet in a single hour, prompting a Flash Flood Emergency, the most urgent flood alert the NWS issues.
The human toll built fast. According to CNN, dozens of people were pulled from floodwaters, including campers along the swollen Black River, and rescue crews responded to a reported building collapse at a campground. Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe declared a state of emergency and activated Missouri Task Force 1, and the state reported roughly 90 or more rescues in Reynolds County alone. Fox Weather reports the broader flash flood threat now covers close to 40 million people across the Ohio and Tennessee valleys as more storms line up…