Southeast South Dakota pounded with rain, flooding
Many stranded as wet weather wreaks havoc in Sioux Falls area, southern I-29 corridor
Dozens of roads between Sioux Falls and Sioux City are closed as heavy rains and flash flooding continues to grip the region.
Parts of South Dakota received up to five inches of rain since Thursday morning. Among the hardest hit, in Lincoln County where officials are grappling with main thoroughfares not passable due to standing water over roadways.
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“Deputies and local fire departments have responded to a number of motorist assists, accidents and rescues early this morning,” the Lincoln County Sheriff’s office wrote in a Facebook post. “The Lincoln County Highway Department and local city street departments are hard at work doing what they can placing barricades and checking road conditions.”
Conditions could worsen into the weekend, with more rain expected to hit the area through Saturday. It’s forced venue closures and event cancellations as well — the Lincoln County Courthouse is closed Friday due to flooding, and a scheduled race at Huset’s Speedway in Brandon has been postponed. There, first responders are attempting to rescue campers stranded in the speedway’s campground area.
Parks, the trail system and streets are also shut down in Sioux Falls.
Motorists traveling in southeast South Dakota should expect additional road closures to be put in place if conditions worsen. The state’s Department of Transportation and local authorities are urging drivers to respect all road closures and not drive around barricades or ignore flaggers.
You can visit the SD 511 website, or download the site’s app to view all road closures.
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