The National Weather Service has issued 20 active flood warnings spanning seven states — Alaska, Alabama, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Missouri, and Washington — with rivers at or rising toward flood stage across a wide arc of the country.
The most extensive flooding is concentrated along the Pearl River system in Louisiana and Mississippi. The Pearl River near Pearl River is in minor flood stage and is expected to remain there through Wednesday, May 20, affecting St. Tammany Parish in Louisiana and Pearl River and Hancock counties in Mississippi. Conditions are more serious on a nearby tributary: flooding on the West Hobolochitto Creek near McNeil, in Pearl River County, Mississippi, has been upgraded from minor to moderate severity and extended in duration beyond earlier forecasts.
In Louisiana, the warnings sweep across a broad stretch of the south-central part of the state. Affected parishes include Rapides, St. Landry, St. Martin, Vermilion, and Lafayette — a cluster covering much of the Acadiana region and the upper coastal plain. Residents in Lafayette and surrounding communities are advised to stay off flooded roads. St. Tammany Parish, at the receiving end of the Pearl River system near the Gulf Coast, remains under the warning through May 20 as upstream levels continue affecting downstream reaches.
In Alaska, a different and more localized threat is unfolding. An ice jam on the Koyukuk River near Hughes, in the Lower Koyukuk Valley, was still in place Tuesday evening, impounding water and driving water levels higher in the village. The National Weather Service issued a flood warning for Hughes through 10:00 PM Alaska Daylight Time Tuesday. Ice-jam floods are particularly hazardous in remote communities: they can build and release with little notice, and evacuation options are limited.
Illinois and Indiana are also under active flood warnings. Affected areas include Clinton County in Illinois and Daviess, Gibson, Knox, and Pike counties in southwestern Indiana.
Across all affected regions, the National Weather Service is repeating standard guidance: turn around, don’t drown. Most flood deaths occur in vehicles. Residents near riverbanks should exercise additional caution, as saturated banks can be undercut and unstable.
St. Tammany Parish’s position downstream on the Pearl River system means the New Orleans metro area is not isolated from these dynamics. Residents tracking conditions there can monitor New Orleans weather as the situation develops through mid-week.
The National Weather Service will update river-stage forecasts as conditions evolve.