FLOOD04656

• County: Statewide
• Community: United States
• Basin: Statewide
• Title: Summary of Floods in the United States During 1965
• Date: 1/1/1970
• Prepared For: US Department of the Interior
• Prepared By: Federal, State, and Local Agencies
• Floodplain - Doc Type: Flood Documentation Report

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FLOODS OF 1965 IN '!'HE UNITED STATES

S~RY OF FLOODS

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1020
EXPLANATION
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Flood.det&mination point
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Rock Creek Hatcheryo

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EXPLANATION
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Flood-determination point
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40'

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5 0 Surprise

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FrGUBE 31.-Location of flood-determinatioil point, :flood of July 3 and 5 in south-
western Nebraska.

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Considerable damage resulted from the flood. All roads leading to
Parks, a village near the month of Rock Creek, were inundwted, and
water flowed knee deep through the town. Several sections of ranch
fences were washed out, and poultry and many swine drowned. State
Highway 3 near Parks was damaged, and new roo.dfill northwest of
Parks was breached when floodwaters washed out the metal culverts
and scoured a wide gap in thefil!.
The peak discharges of the July 3 and July 5 floods were about 3,6
and 4,5 times the previous maximum discharge during the 25-yeo.r
period of record. Each peak had a recurrence interval of more than
50 years.
The Big Blue River flood at Surprise in southwestern Butler County
(fig. 32) on July 19 was caused by precipitation that, accord~ng to
official and unofficial observations, ranged from about 2.5 to 7.5 mches
on July 18 and 19. It was the most severe flood in the memory of local
residents. About a dozen families were evacuated from their homes
along the river in Surprise, and damage to crops in the vidnity was
considerable. When the crest passed through Surprise in the early
morning of the 19th, water was about 1 foot deep on the bridge floor
or slightly more than 1 foot higher than the highest stage previously
recorded at tbat site. The peo.k discharge (table 23) was more than that
of a 50-year flood.

FIGURE 32.-Localtion of flood-determinati-oD point, flood Qf July 19 in SQUth-
eastern Nebraska.

FLOODS OF JULY 18-23 IN NORTHWESTERN MISSOURI

By JAMES E. BOWIE

Outstanding floods occurred July 18-23 in Missouri .on Missouri
River tributaries in an area extending from the Iowa.MissourI State
line on the north to the Blackwater River basin on the south .and to the
Grand River basin on the east (fig, 33). FloodWlLters from these tribu-
taries caused extensive flooding on the Missouri River from St, Joseph
to its mouth near St. Louis. Data in this section are abstracted from a
report by Bowie and Gann (1967).
The floods were due to torrential rains during July 17-20, Storm
totals of more than 20 inches were reported at Rockport and Edgerton,
Little Platte River at Smithville (sta. 22) crested 7.4 feet higher than
any previously known flood. The crest o~ Platte River n~r Agency.
(sta. 14) was 4.6 feet higher than any preVIOusly recorded smce records
began in 1924. Nine lives were lost, 15 communities suffered damages,
and thousands of acres of croplands were flooded.
Total precipitation for the storm of July 17-20 is ~hown on the
isohyetal map of northwestern Missouri (fig. 34). The lmes repr~nt
average amflunts in areas where numerous supplemental observatIons
were reported. Mass rainfall graphs (fig, 35) were plotted from se-
lected recording rain-gage charts. These graphs were group.ed by area
and indicate time and duration of rainfall. The average ramfall over
a 400-sq mi area, in 24 hours, was almost two times the amount expected
for the 100- year rainfall.