Page 6 - ARUBA TODAY

A6 U.S. NEWS
Monday 3 June 2019

Oklahomans clean up after flood; Arkansans brace for crest

By ADAM KEALOHA CAU- hole in a levee in Darda-
SEY and HANNAH GRABEN- nelle, which is roughly 100
STEIN miles (160 kilometers) up-
Associated Press stream from Little Rock.
SAND SPRINGS, Okla. (AP) Officials said Saturday that
— Storm-weary residents they were constructing a
in Oklahoma were gutting temporary levee, calling
waterlogged homes Sun- it a “last ditch effort” to
day as the Arkansas River shore up the city’s south-
continued its slow crest ern border and predicting
rolling hundreds of miles that up to 800 homes could
downstream, even as many be affected by creeping
kept a cautious eye on this floodwaters. The threat de-
week’s weather forecasts creased hours later as the
showing more rain. flow of water slowed.
In the Tulsa suburb of Sand By Sunday morning, Darda-
Springs — among the first nelle appeared to be safe.
communities inundated Yell County Office of Emer-
when the U.S. Army Corp gency Management Direc-
of Engineers started releas- tor Jeff Gilkey said the river
ing more water from a dam never reached the tempo-
upriver to control more se- rary levee. But Gilkey and
vere flooding elsewhere — Witt warned that more rain
soggy couches and reclin- In this Thursday, May 30, 2019 photo, Joel Harness works to clean his daughter’s home that was could reverse the city’s for-
ers and dumpsters full of flooded in the Town and Country neighborhood west of Sand Springs, Okla. tunes.
carpet, drywall and insula- Associated Press National Weather Service
tion lined residential streets presidential candidate volunteers last week, with people died and 118 were meteorologist Dennis Ca-
covered in silt deposited by Beto O’Rourke a tour of the caveats that volunteers injured from the severe vanaugh said possible rain
floodwaters. home while he was in his- must bring their own gloves weather this spring. in Oklahoma would likely
Jamie Casto was helping torically red Oklahoma to and boots. The Tulsa Health As the high waters travel prolong flooding along
clean up the house where see damage firsthand. The Department also gave free southeast, officials in Dar- the Arkansas River, though
her 65-year-old uncle has former Texas congressman tetanus vaccinations to danelle, Arkansas, where a it probably wouldn’t raise
lived for 14 years. said that if he is elected, volunteers. levee breached, said the water levels higher than
Though Casto, 35, said her his plan would include fed- The National Weather Ser- risk of widespread flood- where they crested. Most
uncle didn’t have flood in- eral grants to invest in com- vice said that in Tulsa, the ing has abated, though areas will see the threat of
surance because he was munities before disasters river was at just over 13 communities further down- major flooding subside with-
told he lived in a 500-year strike because the planet feet (4 meters) Sunday stream aren’t out of dan- in a few weeks, although
floodplain, a rust-colored is warming and fires, storms morning, 10 feet (3 meters) ger yet. the river will likely stay very
line 4 feet from the con- and floods are expected to lower than its high point on Dardanelle Mayor Jimmy high through June, Cava-
crete floor of the garage get worse. Wednesday. Witt said in a Facebook naugh said.
clearly marked how high “We know there’s going On Saturday, President post Saturday night that he Arkansas is expected to get
water had gotten before to be more of this — more Donald Trump declared thought the city of about more rain later in the week,
they were able to get into severe, more devastating,” a major disaster in Okla- 4,700 people “will be ok” which would increase the
the house Friday. O’Rourke said. “We need homa and made federal after the flow of water to- likelihood of flash-flooding.
Casto is trying to help her to invest in communities funding available to Musk- ward the community be- “Normally, the waters
uncle fill out paperwork to now.” ogee, Tulsa and Wagoner gan to slow. would drain pretty quickly
apply for emergency loans Cleanup won’t be fast counties, which have been Witt had previously warned into the Arkansas River,”
to help get the house back or easy. The Tulsa Area hit by flooding, tornadoes the city could be inundat- he said, but with the river
in order. Emergency Management and other storms. Across ed after the river on Friday flooded, water will have
She gave Democratic Agency put out a call for the state, officials said six made a 40-foot (12-meter) nowhere to go.q