Flash Flood in Kentucky, March 3, 1997

Showers and thunderstorms hit extreme northeast Kentucky 3 separate times from the predawn hours of Saturday, the 1st, through Monday morning, the 3rd. Rainfall totals of 5 to 9 inches were measured. The heaviest rain rates were on Saturday, the 1st. Parts of Carter County measured 5 to 6 inches of rain in 15 hours on Saturday. The rains on Monday, caused some small streams to rise again, but contributed little to the overall damage. Lulls in the rain occurred late Saturday afternoon and evening and again on Sunday. The full spectrum of flooding resulted. All 4 counties were declared a federal disaster by President Clinton. Amazingly, no deaths or significant injuries occurred in Carter, Lawrence, Greenup, and Boyd Counties. Flash flooding on small feeder creeks began before dawn on the 1st. In Lawrence County, the headwaters of Blaine Creek flooded homes and a school in the Martha and Blaine region. Dry Fork flooded Webbville. Just over 100 individuals in Lawrence County received federal assistance. About 10 small bridges were destroyed in Lawrence County. Just to the north, in Carter County, homes in the Hitchins and Willard vicinity were flooded by the Dry Fork and the headwaters of Little Fork. An elementary school in Hitchins was flooded with 8 feet of water from the Little Fork. People were stranded in many areas. One example, was the intersection of 773 and Route 1, where 30 people waited out the high water in a convenience store. Nearby, Straight Creek also caused damage in Carter County. Around Olive Hill, 43 units of a low income housing project were flooded. In Boyd County, homes in the Westwood region of Ashland had a foot of water inside, from Hoods Creek. Larger streams, such as Tygarts Creek did extensive damage along Route 7 in Greenup County by late Saturday night and Sunday morning. Near the junction of Plum Fork and Tygarts Creek, the 140 year old Bennetts Mill covered bridge met the challenge of the rising water. Local residents heard loud sounds during the night. They assumed the bridge would be gone by morning. Yet, the pre-Civil War bridge withstood 4 feet of water hitting its side. The bridge was reopened after a state inspection. Not far to the northwest, in Brown County Ohio, another historic covered bridge fell victim to the flood of March 1997. The Corps of Engineers dam at Grayson Lake, in Carter County, was shut down to minimum flow around 0900 EST on the 1st. However, only 8 miles downstream, record flooding still occurred on the Little Sandy River from Grayson to its mouth at Greenup. Eight miles down from the dam, at the town of Grayson, the river rose at a peak rate of 3 feet per hour during midday Saturday. The level went from normal low flow to its 21 foot flood stage in 12 hours. A crest of 30.56 feet was reached around 1000 EST on the 2nd, or 9 to 10 feet above flood stage. The lake elevation at Grayson Lake reached a pool of record at 671.4 feet. Twentyfive businesses sustained damage in Carter County, mostly from the Little Sandy. FEMA reported around 200 Carter County citizens had received individual assistance. Further down the Little Sandy River, the flooding escalated. Roads and farmland was inundated around Pactolus. In Greenup County, the flood waters reached the second floor and roofs of some homes along Route 2, from Alcorn to the city of Greenup, by early Sunday, the 2nd. Around 100 homes were damaged along this stretch. Water remained high on the lower reaches of the Little Sandy River for several days, as the Ohio River crested. The rate of rise on the Ohio River was impressive. The core of the highest rains on the 1st, had fallen near the mainstem. The rate of rise was .5 to 1 foot per hour at Ashland, but 1 to 2 feet per hour at Greenup, during Saturday afternoon and evening. At one point, the Ohio River rose 1.3 feet at the Greenup Locks in 30 minutes, with a 15 foot rise from dawn to dark on the 1st. Finally, late on the 4th and early on the 5th, the mighty Ohio River crested. The level was 7 to 9 feet above flood stage from Catlettsburg, through Ashland, to Greenup and South Shore. Low lying areas, not protected by floodwalls, were flooded. The crest did reach up on the floodwall at Catlettsburg, and flooded some homes outside the wall. At Ashland, the crest of 60.79 feet was just short of the floodwall's base. It was the 10th highest crest on record at Ashland. Local police reported crowds of spectators and gawkers lining up, "to see something they haven't seen in years". About 150 people in Boyd County received individual federal assistance from both the flash flooding and river flood. The crest was 62.3 feet at Greenup. Some homes in Greenup had 1 to 3 feet of water inside. A highwater mark was made on the back steps of the Greenup County court house, but county records were not damaged. South Shore Police reported no major damage there, with only a few homes affected. Over 400 residents of Greenup County received individual federal assistance.