Flooding forced people from their homes in parts of Iowa, the result of weeks of rain, as much of the United States yearned for relief Saturday from another round of extraordinary heat.
Sirens sounded at 2 a.m. in Rock Valley, Iowa, population 4,200, where people in hundreds of homes were told to leave as the Rock River could no longer handle the rain that hit the region. The city did not have running water because the wells were unusable.
Mayor Kevin Van Otterloo said a state helicopter was on its way to help, but was canceled when boats were able to reach stranded residents.
“We’ve had a lot of rain here,” he said. “We had 10 centimeters last night in an hour and a half. Our terrain simply can’t take it anymore.”
Gov. Kim Reynolds declared a disaster for 21 counties in northern Iowa, including Sioux County, which includes Rock Valley. In drone video posted by the local sheriff, no streets were visible, only rooftops and treetops appearing above the water.
In South Dakota, Governor Kristi Noem declared an emergency after the southeastern part of the state received heavy rain. The city of Canton, 30 miles (48 kilometers) southeast of Sioux Falls, received 18 inches (45.72 centimeters) of rain.
Several highways were closed, including a key stretch of Interstate 29 south of Sioux Falls, which later reopened. Sioux Falls, the state’s largest city, received more than 17.7 centimeters of rain in three days.
“Even though the rain is easing, we need to remain vigilant,” Noem said. “The worst flooding along our rivers will occur on Monday and Tuesday.”
Elsewhere in the US, the miserable grip of heat and humidity continued. The National Weather Service said about 15 million people were under a heat warning — the highest warning level — while another 90 million were under a heat warning. Millions across the country have had their lives interrupted by stretches of abnormally high temperatures.
Last year, the US experienced the most heat waves since 1936, experts said. One AP Analysis of data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that excessive heat contributed to more than 2,300 deaths, the highest number in 45 years of records.
Temperatures around 100 degrees Fahrenheit (37.8 degrees Celsius) were forecast for Washington, D.C. and Richmond, Virginia, while Philadelphia; Newark, New Jersey; Columbus, Ohio; and Detroit were getting ready for the 90s.
Lately, heat-related hospital visits in New York state have been 500% higher than the average day in June, according to the Department of Health.
“We still have this prolonged heat wave in parts of the Ohio Valley and the Northeast,” said weather service meteorologist Marc Chenard. “We got a little bit of relief early in the week, at least in the eastern U.S., in the Northeast, but overall above-normal temperatures will cover a large portion of the country through next week.”
In southeast Michigan, DTE Energy said 7,400 customers remained without power Saturday afternoon due to storm-related outages, down from 75,000 at the start of the week.
A heat index of about 100 Fahrenheit (37.8 Celsius) didn’t stop Florida couple Judy and Bill Watson from watching the Tigers play the White Sox at Detroit’s Comerica Park. The afternoon visit was a milestone: Bill Watson has seen games at all 30 MLB stadiums.
“We are from Florida. You might be interviewing the wrong people about the heat,” the 71-year-old Bradenton man said with a smile. “We drank water, beer from time to time. We were glad it didn’t rain.”
Across the country in California, temperatures in the state’s Central Valley were expected to reach 106 Fahrenheit (41.1 Celsius), and the NWS issued a heat warning until 8 p.m. Nearly 4,000 homes and businesses in Sacramento were without power for less than an hour in the middle of the day, the Sacramento Bee reported.
In Iowa, power was cut at wastewater treatment plants in Hawarden and Spencer, which together have 14,000 residents.
Aiden Engelkes said he and his girlfriend grabbed clothes, cats and bottled water and left their flooded first-floor apartment in Spencer to go to a friend’s dry space on the fourth floor. His Chevrolet SUV was under the turbulent water outside, except for a piece of the antenna. Across the street, he said, friends were on the roof waiting for help.
“It’s scary,” Engelkes, 20, said.
Although rain chances were forecast to be slim by the middle of next week, the National Weather Service predicted expanded flooding before then in the area as high water moved downstream in several rivers in northern Iowa.
Flooding also closed state highways and county roads in southern Minnesota. Windom, a city of about 4,800 people, received 3.2 inches of rain in addition to previous heavy rains, and the Des Moines River crested at a record high.
“We’re having a hard time keeping up and putting up barricades,” said Councilwoman Jenny Quaid. “We put up barricades and suddenly the water rose so much that the barricade went back into the water.”
In New Mexicowarnings of heavy rain and flash flooding prompted authorities to order some evacuations, with shelters set up for displaced residents.
The NWS announced a flash flood emergency Friday night into early Saturday morning. Impacted areas included the city of Las Vegas, New Mexico, and communities near Albuquerque.
In Ruidoso, a mountain village in New Mexico, full-time residents will be able to return Monday after being forced out by wildfires, although daily life will not return to normal.
“You will need to bring a week’s worth of food and drinking water,” Mayor Lynn Crawford said on Facebook.
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Hanna reported from Topeka, Kansas. AP reporters Julie Walker in New York and Ken Miller in Oklahoma City contributed.
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