Recovery efforts were underway on Sunday in Indiana as portions of the state prepared for extreme heat, more rain and potential flooding after days of storms.
Stubborn storm systems have drenched the Midwest since Tuesday and have caused at least seven deaths in Indiana and displaced scores of residents. More than 50 counties have been affected.
Rushing water inundated homes, submerged roadways and flooded shopping centers. In Indianapolis, the state capital, the White River jumped its banks and threatened portions of the city.
Emergency responders have had to perform rescues by boat.
Wind gusts reached around 100 miles per hour in some areas, according to Gov. Mike Braun, and peak flows broke a 113-year-old record for water height, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
“This is about as widespread of a weather issue we’ve had in years,” Mr. Braun said at a news briefing on Saturday.
President Trump on Saturday approved the governor’s emergency declaration, allowing disaster assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to flow to 53 Indiana counties.
Indiana’s Department of Homeland Security confirmed that there had been seven fatalities caused by the storms. One victim’s age was not released, while the others ranged from 4 to 86.
The State Emergency Operations Center did not know how many residents had been displaced but said more than 200 people were in shelters across Indiana.
In Noblesville, a city of 75,000 people north of Indianapolis, more than 500 homes had been affected by record floodwaters, according to Mayor Chris Jensen. About 170 residents and their pets were evacuated.
Mayor Scott Fadness of Fishers, Ind., said on Sunday that water rescues had been conducted in the area since Thursday. On Saturday, he said emergency personnel had rescued about a dozen individuals and their pets by the White River.
“At this point, our rescue operations have concluded and we now turn our attention to recovery, “ he said on Sunday.
In Portage, Ind., one person died in an apparent home explosion. Storm damage on the roads slowed emergency workers, according to officials.
In Geneva, Ind., a 4-year-old boy died after a tree fell on his home, the Jennings County Sheriff’s Office said.
In Delaware County, a teenager died after entering a river during flooding on Wednesday, according to the sheriff’s office.
The storms have pelted Ohio, Kentucky and Illinois with persistent rain and flooding. One person suffered a weather-related death in Ohio, according to officials.
Recovery efforts are underway as floodwaters are expected to recede in some areas of Indiana, but warnings remain in effect.
In southwestern Indiana, the heat index was expected to reach 105 degrees on Sunday, bringing more dangerous weather to the state.
Inclement weather is forecast throughout the region. Thunderstorms are expected across large swaths of the Ohio Valley, Central Appalachians and Mid-Atlantic. The repeated storms raise the risk of flash flooding. Farther east in West Virginia, two rounds of storms could result in flash floods.
Josh Ryan, a Carmel, Ind., resident with a background in heating, cooling and plumbing, has offered to pump water from flooded homes for free to help residents begin the recovery process, which he characterized as predatory.
“I’m not a government official. I don’t have millions of dollars,” he said in an interview, “But one thing I can do is help people get started.”
Nazaneen Ghaffar, Jacey Fortin and J. David Goodman contributed reporting.
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