Update: 10 p.m.  Saturday

The National Weather Service has issued flood warnings for area rivers.

Those include:

• Moderate flooding is forecast on the East Fork White River near Seymour from this afternoon to Thursday morning. The river will rise above flood stage late this afternoon to 18.3 feet early tomorrow afternoon. It will then fall to 16.6 feet and begin rising again early Monday afternoon. It will rise to 16.7 feet Tuesday morning. It will then fall below flood stage Wednesday evening.
• Moderate flooding is occurring on Haw Creek until Sunday afternoon. Flood stage is 12 feet and the river was at 14.5 feet this evening near Clifford. The river is expected to crest this evening, then to fall back below flood stage tomorrow evening.
• Minor flooding is forecast on the Flatrock River near Columbus from this evening to Monday evening. The river is expected to rise above minor flood stage late this evening to a crest of 14.3 feet early tomorrow afternoon. It will then fall below flood stage early Monday afternoon.
• Minor flooding is forecast on Clifty Creek at Hartsville until further notice. The maximum river depth was 13 feet at 5 p.m. Saturday. Since 1948, Clifty Creek has crested above 13 feet only 3 times, the last time in June 2008. The creek is expected to crest at 12.1 feet late tonight.
• Minor flooding is forecast on the Driftwood River near Edinburgh from late tonight to Tuesday morning. The river is expected to rise above minor flood stage late this evening to a crest of 13.9 feet Monday morning. It will then fall below flood stage early Tuesday morning.
• Minor flooding is forecast on the East Fork White River near Columbus from late tonight to Tuesday morning. The river is expected to rise above flood stage just after midnight tonight to a crest of 11.1 feet Sunday evening. It will then fall below flood stage late Monday evening.
• Minor flooding is happening on the Muscatatuck River at Vernon from this afternoon to early Sunday afternoon. The river was at 22.4 feet at 5:30 p.m. Saturday, more than 5 feet above the 17 foot flood stage. It is expected to crest just after midnight.

You can see updates on many area rivers by clicking here.

Updated: 6 p.m. Saturday

The Bartholomew County Emergency Management Department reports the following roads closed, or with high water as of 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

• County Road 410 N between 1000E and State Road 46 will be closed for several weeks due to a pipe washed out from flooding.

• Just north of 534 N. County Road 500W.

• Bonnell Road between 25th Street and County Road 250E.

• West Lowell Road/ County Road North 500W.

• County Road 500N between State Road 9 and County Road 1000E closed because of high water.

• County Road 800N/Baseline Rd

• County Road 800N west of State Road 9

• County Road 800N at 575E

• County Road 800N west of 325E high water

• County Road 525W just north of Youth Camp Road

• County Road E 450N at 475E

• Old Nashville Road near the transfer station has deep water.

• County Road 500E at 250N

• County Road 500E at 275N

• Wolfcreek Road just south of 194 N. Wolfcreek Road is impassable with high water

• County Road 500N east of State Road 9.

• State Road 9 north of County Road 900N.

• Area of 760 Jonesville Rd.

• Goeller Boulevard west of State Road 46.

• Stafford Road and County Road 900E.

• Raintree Drive northwest of Country Club Rd.

• County Road 400W at 200S

• County Road 200N at 1140E, fast-moving water over the bridge.

• South Gladstone at the bridge south of the “S” curves

• County Road 200N in the area of the Decatur County line.

• Newburn Road at County Road 450N
• Newburn Road at County Road 425N
•  

  Newburn Road at County Road  225N is closed

Updated  6 p.m.

Duke Energy is reporting about 131 customers without power in the Bartholomew/Brown counties area, and about 323 in the Seymour area due to the overnight storms, as of 6 p.m. Saturday.

The utility says that the severity of the damage, coupled with the ongoing storms may slow the pace of restoring power. However, crews will work around the clock until everyone’s service is restored.

Most of the customers in the Bartholomew/Brown counties and Seymour area are expected to have power restored between midnight and 12:30 a.m. Sunday.

Bartholomew County REMC is reporting 5 customers without power.

Southeastern Indiana REMC is reporting 614 customers without power in its coverage area.

A state trooper was seriously injured this morning in a crash on Interstate 74 in Shelby County when his stopped cruiser was rear-ended by an SUV.

State police say that the incident happened at about 2:48 this morning, while Master Trooper Jeremy Basso was assisting a construction crew on I-74 westbound. Basso’s car was parked in a closed lane behind a crew of construction workers and his emergency lights were activated. The lane was closed about a half mile before the crash site, and the area was marked by signs and orange construction barrels.

Basso was able to exit his vehicle and radio for help. He was taken to a local hospital with serious injuries.

The driver of the SUV, 21-year-old Mason Durrett of Indianapolis, appears to have struck several of the construction barrels before hitting the police car. After being taken to the hospital for treatment of his injuries, he was arrested on a preliminary charge of Operating a Vehicle While Intoxicated Causing Serious Bodily Injury.

Photo courtesy of Indiana State Police.

Juneteenth will be celebrated on Fourth Street Saturday in Columbus, featuring African-American culture and cuisine.

The event is from from 2 to 9 p.m. Saturday and is being organized by the Columbus and Bartholomew County NAACP.

Johnnie Edwards, head of the local chapter, explains that despite the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, news of freedom from slavery didn’t reach the last Texas plantations until two years later.

This year’s event will focus on education, he said.

Juneteenth will feature food and information booths, a DJ and main stage activities including dancing, music, drill team and spoken word performances.

This is the first of four events making up Ethnic Expo in Columbus this year. You can get more information online at ethnic expo dot org

The Seymour Department of Public Works is celebrating National Pollinator Week next Thursday with a workshop on butterflies, the flying flowers.

The seminar will be taught by retired teacher Peggy Stark and will teach you how to tell the difference between male and female butterflies, how to attract butterflies to your property and how to protect butterflies.

The session will be at 6:30 p.m. June 24th at the Seymour Community Center on Chestnut Street.

State Sen. Greg Walker is announcing his study committee appointments heading into the 2022 legislative session.

Walker, a Columbus Republican, said he will serve on study committees for elections, employment and labor, pension management oversight and the Native American Indian Affairs Commission.

Walker said he views study committees as “a great opportunity for lawmakers to hear from the public, stakeholders and industry experts on the leading issues affecting our state.”

Study committees meet over the summer and fall to discuss topics approved by a bipartisan Legislative Council.

The Bartholomew County Sheriff’s Department is looking for possible links between a suspicious fire and damage at Anderson Falls Park

The more than 130-year-old District 2 schoolhouse at County Roads 500E and 250N burned down early Monday morning. Firefighters said the structure had no utilities turned on, or materials stored inside, leading them to label the fire as suspicious.

The same night vandals damaged the county-owned park in eastern Bartholomew County, overturning the portable restroom facility, defacing buildings and features with profane graffiti and causing other damage to the rural park.

Chief Deputy Maj. Chris Lane said there there is nothing currently connecting the two incidents. “However, the timing and the location certainly make it a possibility,” Lane said.

Overhead Door of South Central Indiana is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the vandalism at the park.

If you have any information on the incidents, you can call the sheriff’s department tip line at 812-379-1712. Tips can be left anonymously.

Columbus firefighters fought through extreme heat and heavy smoke to rescue a woman trapped inside a burning home Thursday on the east side of the city.

Firefighters were called to a home in the 200 block of South Hinman Street at about 4:42 p.m. yesterday afternoon on a report of a fire in the front bedroom of a home. But when firefighters arrived they found heavy flames were shooting out of the home. Two men had escaped the fire and explained that a woman was still trapped inside a mechanical lift in a back bedroom.

Despite heavy smoke reducing visibility to blackout conditions, firefighters found the woman and pulled her from the home. She was conscious but suffering from smoke inhalation and was taken to Columbus Regional Hospital for treatment.

Additional firefighters arrived on the scene and had the flames under control in about 15 minutes. The fire caused extensive damage to the front of the residence and smoke damage was found throughout the home. Two pet cats died in the fire.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Photo courtesy of Columbus Fire Department.

The National Weather Service is warning of extreme heat in central Indiana today with a heat index of 100 to 105 degrees this afternoon.

A warm front is expected to move east across the area this morning, bringing a hot and humid air mass with afternoon temperatures in the 90s and dew points in the low 70s.

The agency says that if you have outdoor activities planned you should drink plenty of water, wear light-colored clothing and take frequent indoor breaks in an air conditioned space if possible.

Our area is also under an enhanced risk for severe thunderstorms this afternoon and evening. Those storms are possible after about 3 p.m. today, with a threat of damaging winds, isolated tornadoes and large hail. Heavy rain and localized flooding is also possible tonight.