Those who are traveling Route 66 through northeastern Oklahoma may need to make alternative plans over the next few days because of flooding.
According to the Tulsa World:
By the evening of July 4 the Neosho River is expected to crest 1.25 feet higher than it was during historic floods in 1986, Spurgeon said in a telephone interview.
All roads into the city are likely to be cut off by rising waters tonight. The Will Rogers Turnpike remains open at this point. (my emphasis)
The National Guard also is evacuating portions of the city.
Oklahoma has experienced the wettest June on record. The big problem for Miami is that parts of the Kansas border saw up to 15 inches of rain in recent days, according to data I saw at the National Weather Service. All of that water has to go somewhere, and one of those places is the Neosho River.
UPDATE: The Joplin (Mo.) Globe also has a story about Miami.
Parts of South Main Street, Steve Owens Boulevard and parts of the athletic fields at Northeast Oklahoma A&M College will be under water, Spurgeon said. Oklahoma Highway 125 already is closed and Oklahoma Highway 10 and U.S. Highway 69 [old Route 66] are expected to close, Spurgeon said.
“This is a very serious flood.”
“If you received water in 1986, you are going to get it, maybe worse,” said Kevin Trease, Miami fire chief.
UPDATE2: KOTV in Tulsa has aerial video footage of the flooding around Miami.
UPDATE3: The Joplin Globe, in addition to its main story, has a slide show of photos, many of them from Miami. What’s interesting is the Globe has a link to the U.S. Geological Survey, which shows the Neosho River near Commerce, Okla., at 26 feet, which is 11 feet above flood stage, at just before midnight on Monday.
However, this USGS link in nearby Parsons, Kan., shows the level of the Neosho River dropping. It is hoped this bodes well for Miami.
UPDATE 7/3/07: According to the latest USGS survey at noon Tuesday, the Neosho River has reached about 28.5 feet (that’s 13.5 feet above flood stage) in nearby Commerce and seems to be still going up.
The Joplin Globe reports that many roads in Miami have been rerouted, with long lines in many areas. Weather officials predict the river won’t fall below flood stage until Saturday.
The Tuesday edition of the Miami News-Record had a scary prediction:
The current flooding event is expected to push the Neosho River to near 32 feet – 17 feet above flood stage – and water in Miami is anticipated to be several feet higher than was recorded in the 1986 flood.
And the Globe has a slide show of photos from Miami’s 1986 flood. In the ninth photo, you’ll see an image of the old neon sign of the Thunderbird Motel on Route 66.
UPDATE 7/4/07: According to the USGS, the Neosho River is finally starting to recede after reaching a peak of about 29.5 feet — which is 14.5 feet above flood stage.
According to the Joplin Globe, parts of Miami are under eight to 10 feet of water. More than 50 roads have been closed, but the newspaper says that U.S. 69 from Kansas (aka Route 66) remained open. It’s the worst flood in more than 50 years.
A startling factoid: Miami has seen 14 major floods in 21 years. More than 30 percent of the community is in the 100-year flood plain. It may be time to consider a buyout of the worst-flooding areas and not allow homes to be built there anymore.
I spoke with a colleague who has relatives in Miami. She says the Coleman and the Ku-Ku should be pretty safe, because it would take a spectacular flood to reach those areas. I suspect the Sidewalk Highway is underwater, though.
I doubt they’ll close the turnpike; it’s on pretty high ground, so Route 66 travelers should be able to pick up the slab near Commerce, bypass the flooding, and then get back on 66 at Afton.
its really sad that people can only think about traveling when my fellow miamians are trying to figure out how to get our lives back…………
From Miami
Don’t feel bad about living your life. We who live in Miami know flooding. We live at the confluence of the Neosh and Spring Rivers.
This is the worst flooding I have seen in my lifetime, however. If you want to see Rt. 66 come on in…just bring your mops and wear your rubber boots and give a hand while you are here. You can get in from the north on 66. You can head out on the Sidewalk Highway (The ribbon road) when you head south as it is high and dry (unlike highway 69).
Anonymous, I don’t think people “can only think about traveling.” But this is not the FEMA Web site. It is a travel site, and as such, its purpose, in part, is to serve Route 66 travelers — some of whom very well might have ended up stranded in your community, getting in the way and taking up precious resources, if they couldn’t figure out how to get through or around Miami on their way west.
I suppose I could have encouraged these people — most of whom have absolutely no experience or training in disaster response — to get as close to Miami as possible in their cars, hike the rest of the way into town, and endanger themselves and others by getting in the way and making well-intentioned but ineffective and potentially hazardous attempts to “help” your fellow Miamians … but I thought it wiser to suggest that they hit the turnpike, where they’d be safe and out of the way until the water receded.
I’m sorry you misinterpreted that to mean that I did not care about the folks living in Miami, who are dealing with the aftermath of this flood. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
Anyone who knows anything about the Route 66 community also knows that on the whole, Mother Road enthusiasts are among the most compassionate, generous individuals on the face of the earth — salt-of-the-earth people who will happily open their pocketbooks, pull on their work boots, and roll up their sleeves to help a 66 community in need.
If you will supply us with some practical information — such as the names and addresses of organizations that are collecting money and supplies to help flood victims, or the contact information for organizations involved in hands-on cleanup and rebuilding efforts — I believe you’ll find that you’ve grossly underestimated the compassion and concern of the Route 66 community.
We are not self-absorbed vacationers who come to town to play and leave when the chips are down. We care very much about this road and its people. We don’t want to get in the way. We don’t want to create unnecessary hazards. But we very much want to help. It’s up to you and your neighbors to supply us with the information we need to be able to do that.
Susan, thanks for the information. The Oklahoma Route 66 Association doesn’t have a lot of money, but it has a lot of heart, and its members aren’t afraid of hard work. Tell us where we’re needed and how we can help, and we’ll be happy to pitch in.