Flood warnings across seven states have eased slightly from yesterday’s peak of 71 active alerts, but the National Weather Service still has 66 warnings in effect as of today across Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, New York, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin — with river flooding ongoing and no rapid improvement in sight for the upper Midwest.
Alaska and New Mexico, which were under warnings 24 hours ago, have dropped off the active alert list. The core of the event remains concentrated in Wisconsin and northern Illinois, where multiple river systems are running above flood stage and conditions are expected to persist through at least Monday evening.
The Crawfish River at Milford in Jefferson County, Wisconsin, continues to produce minor flooding, with agricultural land and low-lying areas — including Riverbend — inundated at current levels of 8.0 feet or above. The Fox River is generating warnings at three separate gauging points: Princeton and near Berlin in Green Lake County, and at its lower reach near New Munster, where it affects Lake and Kenosha counties in Illinois. The New Munster gauge is the most serious of the three, with the National Weather Service characterizing conditions there as moderate flooding — a step above the minor flooding designation at the other Fox River sites.
The downward trend in total alert count, from 71 to 66, suggests some upstream gauges are receding, but active moderate flooding on the lower Fox River indicates the threat is migrating downstream rather than simply dissipating. Residents along lower river corridors should monitor National Weather Service updates closely as river crests move through.
Texas remains in the picture with active flood warnings of its own. Readers tracking conditions in the Houston metro can follow the latest at Houston weather, where river and bayou flooding has been an ongoing concern this season.
The National Weather Service is urging the same precautions that apply across all active warning zones: do not drive around barricades or attempt to cross flooded roadways. Even six inches of fast-moving water can knock a person off their feet; two feet is sufficient to float a vehicle. The majority of flood fatalities occur in vehicles.
With 66 warnings still active across a broad swath of the country, this remains a significant multi-state flooding event. The National Weather Service will continue issuing updates as river gauges are reassessed through the evening hours.