Flooding forced people from their homes in parts of Iowa following weeks of rain, as much of the United States on Saturday yearned for relief from yet another round of unseasonable heat.
At 2 a.m., sirens sounded in Rock Valley, Iowa, population 4,200, where people in hundreds of homes were told to leave because the Rock River could no longer sustain the rain that has hit the region. The city had no running water because the wells were unusable.
Mayor Kevin Van Otterloo said a state helicopter was en route to help but was called off when boats were able to reach stranded residents.
“We’ve had so much rain here,” he said. “Last night we had 10 centimeters within an hour and a half. Our soil simply can’t handle it anymore.”
Gov. Kim Reynolds declared a disaster for 21 counties in northern Iowa, including Sioux County, which includes Rock Valley. In drone video installed by the local sheriff, no streets were visible, only roofs and treetops rising above the water.
Elsewhere in the US, the miserable grip of heat and humidity continued. The National Weather Service said about 15 million people were under a heat warning — the highest alert level — while another 90 million people were under a heat warning. Millions of people across the country have had this their lives disrupted by stretching exercises of unusually high temperatures.
Last year the US experienced the most heat waves since 1936, experts say. A AP Analysis Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that excessive heat has contributed to more than 2,300 deaths, the most in 45 years of data.
Temperatures around 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8 degrees Celsius) were forecast for Washington, DC and Richmond, Virginia, while Philadelphia; Newark, NJ; Columbus, OH; and Detroit are bracing for the high 90s.
Heat-related hospital visits in New York state have recently been 500% higher than the average day in June, according to the Department of Health.
“An extended heat wave remains in place across parts of the Ohio Valley and the Northeast,” said weather service meteorologist Marc Chenard. “We’ll get some relief early in the week, at least in the eastern U.S. and the Northeast, but overall, above-normal temperatures will blanket much of the country even into next week.”
In southeastern Michigan, DTE Energy said 7,400 customers were without power Saturday afternoon due to storm-related outages, compared to 75,000 earlier this week.
A heat index of about 100 Fahrenheit (37.8 degrees Celsius) didn’t stop Florida couple Judy and Bill Watson from watching the Tigers play the White Sox at Detroit’s Comerica Park. Their afternoon visit was a milestone: Bill Watson has now seen games at all 30 MLB ballparks.
“We’re from Florida. Maybe you’re interviewing the wrong people about heat,” the 71-year-old Bradenton man said with a smile. “We drank water and occasionally beer. We were glad it didn’t rain.”
Across the country in California, temperatures in the state’s Central Valley were expected to reach 41.1 degrees Celsius, and the NWS issued a heat advisory until 8 p.m. Nearly 4,000 homes and businesses in Sacramento lost power in less than an hour in the middle of the day, the Sacramento Bee reported.
Flooding was a problem in southeastern South Dakota and northwestern Iowa. Several highways were closed, including a major stretch of Interstate 29 south of Sioux Falls that later reopened. Sioux Falls, the state’s largest city, had more than 7 inches of rain in three days.
In Iowa, power was shut off at wastewater treatment plants in Hawarden and Spencer, which have a combined population of 14,000.
Aiden Engelkes said he and his girlfriend packed clothes, cats and bottled water and left their flooded first-floor apartment in Spencer for a friend’s dry room on the fourth floor. His Chevy SUV sat outside under the swirling water, except for a piece of the antenna. Across the street, he said, friends were sitting on a roof waiting for help.
“It’s terrifying,” says Engelkes (20).
Even though the chances of rain were forecast to be slim by mid-next week, the National Weather Service earlier predicted an increase in flooding in the area as high tides flowed downstream on several rivers in northern Iowa.
Flooding also closed state and county highways in southern Minnesota. Windom, a city of about 4,800 residents, received 3.2 inches of rain on top of previous heavy rains, and the Des Moines River had a record crest there.
“We’re having a hard time keeping up and putting up barricades,” said City Councilwoman Jenny Quaid. ‘We put up barricades, and then suddenly the water rises so much that the barricade is all the way back in the water.’
In New MexicoWarnings of heavy rain and flash flooding prompted officials to order some evacuations, with shelters set up for displaced residents.
The NWS declared a flash flood emergency from Friday evening through early Saturday. The affected areas include the city of Las Vegas, New Mexico and communities near Albuquerque.
In Ruidoso, a mountain town in New Mexico, full-time residents will be allowed to return Monday after being displaced by wildfires, although daily life will not return to normal.
“You’re going to have to bring a week’s worth of food, you’re going to have to bring drinking water,” Mayor Lynn Crawford said on Facebook.
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Hanna reported from Topeka, Kansas. AP reporters Julie Walker in New York City and Ken Miller in Oklahoma City contributed.