Several days of heavy rainfall and snowmelt caused widespread flooding from parts of US South to Midwest, leading to numerous water rescues and leaving at least one person dead. Excessive rain and areal flooding will continue over the next couple of days, NWS warns. Numerous Winter Weather Advisories are in effect from central Texas to Illinois. West Virginia Governor Jim Justice issued a state of emergency on Saturday, February 17, 2018, for all 55 counties of the state due to flooding. Justice issued it early Saturday after heavy rain triggered flooding in multiple locations and caused many rivers
to rise, including the Ohio, West Fork, Tiger Valley, Little Kanawha, Buckhannon and Monongahela. Overflowing creeks and rivers also caused some flooding in eastern and southern Ohio, in particular in Jefferson and Belmont Counties, where emergency teams made several flood rescues on February 17. According to the National Weather Service, the Ohio River at Cincinnati reached its flood stage of 15.8 m (52 feet) on February 18, causing minor flooding. The river was expected to continue rising to near 17 m (55.9 feet) by Wednesday morning, February 21 before falling below flood stage Friday morning. READ MORE
