Heavy rains cause flooding in parts of KC, and more storms are on the way

Parts of the Kansas City area saw flooded streets and parking lots after thunderstorms moved through Wednesday.

The storms prompted the National Weather Service to issue a flash flood warning about 9:30 a.m. for much of the Kansas City area, included eastern Wyandotte and northeastern Johnson counties in Kansas, and Jackson, northwestern Johnson, southeastern Platte, southern Clay, southwestern Ray and western Lafayette counties in Missouri.

Radar indicated that thunderstorms were dumping heavy amounts of rain. As much as 2 to 3 inches of rain were likely in the areas with the heaviest rain.

The flash flood warning remains in effect until 3:30 p.m.

As the storms moved through the area, several streets became flooded, prompting at least two water rescue calls from 59th Street and Brookside Boulevard.

Crews were also blocking some streets with barricades to keep drivers out of flooded areas.

In downtown Excelsior Springs, runoff from the rains flooded streets and parking lots. Two cars were underwater near the police department, officers said.

During the downpours, police urged residents to move their cars out of lower-lying areas, including parking lots.

There were no reports of water rescues or injuries from the flooding. The waters started to recede after the rains passed early in the afternoon.

The storms dropped 2.17 inches of rain at Kansas City International Airport. Meanwhile, 0.89 inches of rain fell at Kansas City Downtown Airport; 1.42 inches at Lee’s Summit; 0.47 at St. Joseph; 0.41 at Chillicothe; 0.30 at Kirksville; 0.33 at Lawrence; 0.31 at Olathe New Century AirCenter; and 0.31 at Johnson County Executive Airport, according to the six-hour precipitation report from the National Weather Service at 1 p.m.

The rain was part of several rounds of storms and thunderstorms expected to move through the region Wednesday.

The first round of storms moved into the area from the northwest Wednesday morning.

Another round of thunderstorms is expected to push into the area Wednesday afternoon and evening, bringing the chance of gusty winds, small hail and isolated tornadoes. The highest tornado risk will be west of Interstate 29. A few of the storms are likely to be strong to severe. In addition to strong winds, flooding and flash flooding will be possible with any heavy rains, according to the National Weather Service.

On Thursday, there’s a chance for strong storms across northern Kansas. The storms could move east through the evening hours, bringing wind, heavy rain and possibly flooding.

There are several chances for thunderstorms through the end of the week and into the weekend, but it’s too early pin down the severity of the storms. Heavy rains will be possible with those storms, bringing the chance for flooding, according to the National Weather Service.

 

This story was originally published June 3, 2015 at 8:42 AM with the headline "Heavy rains cause flooding in parts of KC, and more storms are on the way."