High water on roadways; chance of large hail and damaging winds after 5 p.m. today
UPDATE: The Coshocton County Sheriff's Office was reporting high water on various roadways throughout the county this afternoon. Drivers are urged to use extreme caution and to not drive through flooded roadways. County Road 16 has been closed at Schumaker Farms with barricades. The suggested detour is U.S. 36.
Other roads with high water include County Road 10 in Chili and at County Road 425, County Road 1 at Ohio 83, County Road 12 at Township Road 206, County Road 24 at County Road 28, Ohio 93 at Hickory Flats, Ohio 16 at County Road 75, Ohio 93 in Fresno, Ohio 83 North at Ohio 643 and County Road 25 near County Road 24. There might be others yet to be confirmed or reported.
According to the National Weather Service, showers and thunderstorms are expected mainly after 5 p.m. Tuesday and could bring large hail and damaging winds with gusts up to 22 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. Much of the same is expected tonight with a 90% chance of rain. More showers and thunderstorms are expected before 11 a.m. Wednesday with scattered showers after 3 p.m. Chance of rain is 30%. Rain and snow flurries expected Wednesday night, with an 80% chance of precipitation.
COSHOCTON − Rob McMasters, executive director of the Coshocton County Emergency Management Agency, said no severe flooding had been reported locally as of 8 a.m., but he has his eye on severe weather for the rest of the day.
McMasters said there was some water across roads and in low lying areas on Monday from quick, overnight bursts, but that dissipated. He said the potential for flooding is certainly there with how saturated the ground is from rain the past few days.
He's watching the radar and listening to reports from the National Weather Service. The biggest chance for severe weather is late afternoon to early to evening. McMasters said this is the first time in a long time he can remember Coshocton County being in a moderate risk zone for severe weather. The area wasn't even marked at moderate risk on Saturday when a severe storm came through with heavy rain, high winds and hail.
He said the potential is there for tornadoes, hail and high winds. He's most concerned with the high winds as Coshocton County is in a hatched area for a 10% chance or higher for winds equal to or greater to 74 mph.
"We're taking a serious look at that wind for a couple things. One, the last several wind events we've had has blown over the dead trees and blown out the dead logs in trees and blown out all the dead matter in trees. So, we haven't had a lot of tree damage. But, with the ground as saturated as it is and we have high winds, our concern for trees uprooting increases. It's not because they're breaking in the wind, it's because the ground is so saturated," McMasters said. "What we see across Coshocton County is very low root bases for a lot of these trees. It's not what you think where the roots are going straight down."
McMasters said the most important thing people can do in preparation is just to pay attention to the weather and make sure alerts they're seeing is for their area.
"Everybody gets there weather forecast from wherever. We're not going to tell you to get your weather forecast from one entity or another. Just pay attention to the weather and any alerts you may receive and any alerts you receive are for where you're at," McMasters said.
He also said it's always good to make sure your cell phone is charged, you have gas in your car, a flashlight with fresh batteries and drinking water. Know where you're going to shelter in place at if needed and don't be afraid to go there anytime.
"Pay attention to what the warnings are saying. If you need to take shelter, take shelter," McMasters said. "If you don't like storms and you want to take shelter this morning because of thunder, by all means, take shelter when you feel you need to take shelter."
This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Coshocton County at moderate risk for severe weather Tuesday afternoon
