9-Inch Rain Soaks Little Rock; Flood Watches Posted in 5 States

A record rainfall flooded streets in Arkansas on Saturday, with at least 9 inches of rain in the Little Rock area, surpassing a record for the date set in 1938 by 7 inches, weather officials said.

“We have some street flooding, but that’s about all at the moment,” police dispatcher Elmer Kershaw said. “We have a few streets barricaded in different locations around town because of deep water, but there are no problems with the water getting into houses.

“We do worry, yes, because it is still raining, and if it keeps raining it can’t get but worse. . . . “

The heavy rains forced officials to close streets in Arkadelphia, Ark., and in Pulaski County. Flooding was also reported in Clark and Hot Springs counties.

Flood Watches

Flash flood watches were in effect from northeast Texas across central Arkansas to southeast Missouri, western Tennessee and western Kentucky. Five inches of rain fell overnight Friday in the Boot Heel of Missouri.

Texas saw one of its nastiest and most diverse days of weather for the year Saturday.

There was snow in the Panhandle; showers and thunderstorms statewide; a tornado, which caused no damage; wind and hail in east and southeast Texas; plunging temperatures in the northern two-thirds of the state, and balmy 80-degree readings in the Rio Grande Valley.

Storms knocked over trees and power lines in the Arkansas towns of Camden and Stephens, and winds battered a schoolhouse roof and mobile home and felled trees and power lines in McNeil.

Streams Overflow

Parts of western Tennessee received 3 to 4 inches of rain overnight Friday, causing small streams and drainage ditches to overflow.

In southern Mississippi, street flooding was reported near Summit in Pike County. Severe morning thunderstorms brought gusty winds to Magee, destroying a chicken farm and downing numerous trees, the National Weather Service reported.