Indiana's White River rose higher this week than at any point in the last 113 years. It crested at more than 24.9 feet, which is over a foot above the record set in 1913 [1]. The water came fast: more than 11 inches of rain fell east of Indianapolis since Tuesday [1].
Governor Mike Braun declared a state of emergency on Thursday, August 13, and mobilized the Indiana National Guard [1]. In Anderson, residents were ordered to evacuate after streets and homes were surrounded by several feet of water, and across the region first responders rescued dozens of people [1]. Neighborhoods in Yorktown and Cambridge City went underwater as well [1].
What a record like this looks like at ground level is a resident named Charlie Simmons, who told CBS News his just-rebuilt home was destroyed [1]. 'I got in a couple months ago,' he said. 'Now it's destroyed' [1].
The emergency is not over. Flooding was expected until Sunday [1], which means the response, the declaration, the Guard, the rescues, is still being measured against a crest that broke every prior mark. The immediate winners are the dozens pulled to safety. The cost is carried by households like Simmons's, and the full tally is not yet in.
