MIDLAND, Mich. (AP) — Authorities were assessing damage Thursday as floodwaters from heavy rains that overtook two dams retreated in some mid-Michigan communities and continued to threaten others further downriver.
Ryan Stadelmaier, 16, gives a piggyback ride to his sister Rachel Stadelmaier, 27, as they cross Walden Woods Drive while helping residents tend to their flooded homes, Wednesday, May 20, 2020, in Midland, Mich. (Katy Kildee/Midland Daily News via AP)
The flooding forced the evacuation of about 11,000 people in the Midland area, about 140 miles (225 kilometers) north of Detroit. The floodwaters mixed Wednesday with containment ponds at a Dow Chemical Co. plant and could displace sediment from a downstream Superfund site, though the company said there was no risk to people or the environment.
Hunter Klich, 14, maneuvers a kayak down the middle of Walden Woods Drive, Wednesday, May 20, 2020, in Midland, Mich., as residents coped with flooding. (Katy Kildee/Midland Daily News via AP)
Officials warned that the scope of the damage could take days to fully see. The nearly century-old Edenville Dam, which failed to hold back floodwaters, was the target of lengthy investigations by federal regulators, who revoked the facility’s license over safety violations two years before the flooding. Wixom Lake, which had been held back by the dam, was left nearly empty.
John Kraft, an engineer for The H Hotel, wades through floodwater in the hotel’s underground parking garage, Wednesday, May 20, 2020, in Midland, Mich. (Katy Kildee/Midland Daily News via AP)
“You can see houses with water up to the roof line, you can see a lakebed that was drained out,” Gov. Gretchen Whitmer said Thursday morning during an appearance on “CBS This Morning.”
A look at the Sanford Dam on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. After the Edenville Dam failed and the Tittabawassee River flooded surrounding areas, many residents were urged to leave their homes and to brace themselves for the possibility of the Sanford Dam collapsing. Water flowed over the top of it through the night, but the structure is still in place. (Kaytie Boomer/The Bay City Times via AP)
“There’s no lake there anymore, because it’s all at the lower end of the river now. The water should start to recede now. But there’s no question that this is a devastating event.”
Josie Nash, 18 of Elsie, works to save fish with her friends by placing them in water buckets and transporting them back into what is left of Wixom Lake on Wednesday, May 20, 2020 in Edenville Township north of Midland. After two days of heavy rain, the Edenville Dam failed and flood waters rushed south, ravaging the landscape in its path. (Jake May/The Flint Journal, MLive.com via AP)
The National Weather Service said communities farther downstream were bracing for flooding in the coming days. A flood warning was in effect Thursday along the Tittabawassee River from Midland downstream into Saginaw, and flooding in that area was possible through the weekend.
Sanford resident Clint Clark, 44, walks out into what was once the bottom of Wixom Lake after water washed out due to the failure of the Edenville Dam on Wednesday, May 20, 2020 in Edenville Township north of Midland, Mich. (Jake May/The Flint Journal, MLive.com via AP
Residents near the Tittabawassee River were urged this week to seek higher ground following what the National Weather Service described as “catastrophic dam failures” at the Edenville Dam, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northwest of Midland, and the Sanford Dam. Officials have said the Sanford Dam was overflowing but that the extent of structural damage isn’t yet known.
Residents walk past boating docks that sit still after water washed out of Wixom Lake due to the failure of the Edenville Dam on Wednesday, May 20, 2020 in Edenville Township north of Midland, Mich. (Jake May/The Flint Journal, MLive.com via AP)
No injuries have been reported.
Dow said the containment ponds held only water, and it has detected no chemical releases from the plant in Midland where the company was founded, though the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said state officials would evaluate the plant when they’re able. Once the flooding recedes, Dow will be required to assess the Superfund site — contaminated with dioxins the company dumped in the last century — to determine if any contamination was released, the EPA said.
First responders from the sheriff’s office survey the flooding in downtown Midland, Mich., on Wednesday, May 20, 2020. After the Edenville Dam failed and the Tittabawassee River flooded surrounding areas, many residents were urged to leave their homes. (Kaytie Boomer/The Bay City Times via AP)
Michigan has been a national hot spot for COVID-19, with more than 52,000 cases and 5,000 deaths, but Midland County has had fewer than 80 cases and under 10 deaths. Still, residents were advised to take precautions and schools set up as shelters spaced cots to adhere to social distancing guidelines.
Bob Yahrmarkt, right, stands on his washed out driveway next to his home, Wednesday, May 20, 2020, in Edenville, Mich. Some people living along two mid-Michigan lakes and parts of a river have been evacuated following several days of heavy rain that produced flooding and put pressure on dams in the area returned to the area to survey the damage. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
The flooding washed away some roadways, and left others impassable. Selina Tisdale, spokeswoman for the city of Midland, said roads must be inspected for damage that could make traveling along them hazardous.
Damages are seen on one of two North M-30 bridges on Wednesday, May 20, 2020 in Edenville, Mich. After two days of heavy rain, the Edenville Dam failed and flood waters rushed south, ravaging the landscape in its path. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
“We’re working to get information to folks on when they can return to their houses, but stress that a lot of infrastructure gets compromised,” Tisdale said.
Volunteers assist evacuated Midland residents at a temporary shelter at Midland High School, Wednesday, May 20, 2020, in Midland, Mich. Floodwaters have overtaken dams and forced the evacuation of about 10,000 people from communities in central Michigan. Families living along the Tittabawassee River and connected lakes in Midland County were ordered to leave home Tuesday evening, the second time in less than 24 hours. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)People photograph the floodwaters of the Tittabawassee River that encroached on downtown Midland, Mich., Wednesday, May 20, 2020. Floodwaters have overtaken dams and forced the evacuation of about 10,000 people from communities in central Michigan. Families living along the Tittabawassee River and connected lakes in Midland County were ordered to leave home Tuesday evening, the second time in less than 24 hours. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
