Businesses were shuttered Saturday and Sunday as workers cleared debris from the weekend’s storm.
(George Hale, WFIU/WTIU News)
City of Bloomington utilities officials say the weekend’s destructive flooding was unrelated to construction on a culvert near Kirkwood Avenue.
A spokesperson for the utilities department said Sunday that the flooding overwhelmed existing drainage systems due to the high amount of rainfall.
“There is no denying this extreme amount of rain in such a short period of time overwhelmed the current stormwater system, and it’s certainly reasonable for people to wonder if construction contributed to the flooding in the area. It did not,” said Holly McLauchlin, communications manager for the utilities department.
Instead, McLauchlin said, the flooding was a result of so much rain coming down so fast.
“On Friday and Saturday, flash flooding occurred across a 30-mile area with damage in both rural and urban areas. Here in the city, crews were out cleaning inlets … before, during, and after the storm to facilitate the fastest possible removal of the excessive rain.”
National Weather Service precipitation totals indicated up to 8 inches of rain fell in parts of south central Indiana over a 24-hour period.
McLaughlin said that a 2-decade-old “Big Dig” project was never fully completed but said the current city administration approved new stormwater work in 2019. She said the culvert that is being reconstructed will be twice the size of the current tunnel.
The spokesperson was responding to complaints by business owners about the city’s preparedness and questions about the construction work.
Workers spent Saturday and Sunday clearing debris from the weekend’s storm, which killed at least one person and caused widespread damage.
Bloomington police said 31-year-old Colten Booe was last seen in his vehicle as he drove into rapidly-moving floodwaters near the intersection of S. College Avenue and W. Dodds Street.
A 29-year-old friend in the passenger seat was able to escape through the open side car window. The friend said he was dragged under water for several seconds but eventually was able to grab a tree branch and pull himself from the flood waters.
Captain Ryan Pedigo in a news release said officers found the car on its side in floodwaters in Switchyard Park Saturday morning, but it was unoccupied.
A group of searchers located a body in a pile of debris about 50 yards south of Country Club Drive near Clear Creek Sunday morning.
Monroe County Coroner Joani Shields positively identified the body as Booe. An autopsy is scheduled Monday to determine the cause of Booe’s death.
Community organizations were also cleaning up and repairing facilities Sunday.
Affected sites included one of Bloomington’s main homeless shelters as well as one of the city’s Boys & Girls Club locations on Lincoln Street.
At the Beacon, Inc. homeless center on Sunday, Duke Energy workers were repairing a phone line damaged by a fallen tree. Power was out inside.
“Lots of water and debris, and mud and things inside the building that we had to work hard to clean up and sanitize. And probably about four feet of water in our in our basement,” said Beacon executive director Forrest Gilmore.
None of the people he serves were in the building during the storm because Beacon operates only during the daytime. He said city officials were in touch and first responders were visiting homeless encampments to check on people.
An organizer with the Boys & Girls Club on Lincoln Street said volunteers helped clean up debris and water from the floods on Sunday afternoon.
