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Flooding occurring in Oklahoma PanhandleBEAVER, Okla. (AP)--Several days of rain inundated county roads in the eastern part of the Oklahoma Panhandle, an area not known for flooding, authorities said Aug. 18. Four to 6 inches of rain has fallen in Beaver County since Aug. 14, swamping low-lying areas, county road and dry stream beds with up to a half-foot or more of water, Beaver County Emergency Management Director Keith Shadden said. There have been no reports of structural damage or injuries and no homes have been evacuated, but Shadden estimated rain was falling at a rate of a half-inch an hour. "What we're looking at right now is we're trying to put barricades and emergency lights and warnings out to advise people about low-lying areas," he said. "The water hasn't gotten close to people's residences, it seems to be following natural waterways. We haven't had any calls from residents asking for help to remove them from their homes." The National Weather Service issued a flash-flood warning for Beaver County, as well as for Comanche, Cotton and Tillman counties in southwestern Oklahoma. A meandering low pressure system moving south into the region is the culprit behind the unseasonably cool, wet weather, according to the weather service. The system may not track east out of the area until late in the week. The rain has had a beneficial effect. It's helping ease a prolonged dry spell in the Panhandle that has been compared with the Dust Bowl days of the 1930s. Beaver and eight other counties in western Oklahoma are part of an agriculture disaster declaration issued by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in July. Shadden said even with more average rainfall, he doesn't remember flooding like he's seen in the past few days. "This part of the country is not noted for having too much water," he said. 8/25/08 Date: 8/21/08 Advertisement
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