Jet skis used to evacuate residents in flooded areas - Several counties affected by
rain, flooded rivers, creeks
The Hutchinson News (Kansas)
By John Green
May 8, 2007

LYONS - Jet skis were the vehicles of choice in rural Rice County on Monday as residents and rescuers alike used them to ford flooded creeks and escape water- surrounded homes.

Firefighters used the watercraft to evacuate a half-dozen rural residents near Saxman beginning just after midnight Monday, and residents near Hunter Boulevard turned to them to rescue neighbors late Monday afternoon.

"I think every home within a quarter mile up and down the river is flooded for sure," said Saxman resident Chad Mathews, referring to Cow Creek. "The width of the water at my point was 11/2 to 13/4 mile wide."

Dozens of people couldn't make it to work in Lyons on Monday as floodwaters from three days of heavy rain blocked some 40 county roads and several state and U.S. highways.

Creeks were rising all day in Reno County, too, as the floodwaters moved south, with three county roads closed before 3 p.m. and others expected to follow.

"We started getting ready to leave before 10 (p.m.), before they told us to evacuate," said Tina Ludwig, also of Saxman, a community of 10 or 12 homes halfway between Sterling and Lyons. "We have cattle and calves and horses we had to move to higher ground. I'm still worried about the dogs. My husband was going to borrow some jet skis to check on them. It's the only way to get around."

Mathews said he and his wife moved all of their furniture from the basement Sunday night, but he wasn't sure if it will be good enough.

"The basement is completely full," he said. "You take one step in, and you're in water." After a night in a motel, Mathews went back Monday, first on a jet ski and then on a four-wheel tractor, to help neighbors move property to higher ground.

Rain totals

Weather radar showed large portions of Barton, Rice, Ellsworth, Lincoln and Saline counties received 8 to 10 inches of rain between Friday and Sunday, said Chris Jakub, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Wichita.