Floods of August 21-24, 2007, in Northwestern and North-Central Ohio

Heavy rains in northwestern and north-central Ohio on August 19-22, 2007, caused severe flooding and widespread damages to residential, public, and commercial structures in the communities of Bluffton, Bucyrus, Carey, Columbus Grove, Crestline, Findlay, Mansfield, Ottawa, and Shelby. On August 27, 2007, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) issued a notice of a Presidential declaration of a major disaster affecting Allen, Crawford, Hancock, Hardin, Putnam, Richland, Seneca, and Wyandot Counties as a result of the severe flooding. Rainfall totals for most of the flooded area were 3 to 5 in., with some locations reporting as much as 8 to 10 in. Three National Weather Service (NWS) gages in the area indicated a rainfall recurrence interval of greater than 1,000 years, and two indicated a recurrence interval between 500 and 1,000 years. Total damages are estimated at approximately $290 million, with 8,205 residences registering for financial assistance. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) computed flood recurrence intervals for peak streamflows at 22 streamgages and 8 ungaged sites in and around the area of major flooding. The peak streamflows at Sandusky River near Bucyrus streamgage and at seven of the eight ungaged sites had estimated recurrence intervals of greater than 500 years. The USGS located and surveyed 421 high-water marks and plotted high-water profiles for approximately 44.5 miles of streams throughout the nine communities.