SE MISSOURI — A series of intense thunderstorms overnight and into Friday produced torrential rain across parts of southeastern Missouri, prompting large-scale search-and-rescue operations, multiple airlifts and a state of emergency declaration.
Campers airlifted after roads vanish
Authorities said the Army National Guard used UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters to lift more than 150 campers and staff from Camp Taum Sauk near Lesterville after surrounding roads were washed out and floodwaters trapped people at the site. The evacuees were flown to an elementary school in the area to be reunited with families and checked by first responders.
The flooding was not limited to the youth camp. At the Bearcat Getaway campground on the Black River, roughly 85 miles south of St. Louis, about 20 people climbed onto a building to escape rising water when the structure collapsed under them, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
“Between the weight and the constant waters underneath it, it just gave away on them,”
— Sgt. Eddie Young, Missouri State Highway Patrol, describing the building collapse at the Bearcat Getaway campground.
Scale of the storm and local impacts
National Weather Service meteorologists in St. Louis reported as much as 6 to 12 inches of rainfall in several counties as thunderstorms moved repeatedly over the same areas. Officials described the event in some spots as extraordinarily rare and warned additional rain could worsen conditions.
Gov. Mike Kehoe declared a state of emergency and activated state search-and-rescue resources and the National Guard to assist. State and local teams combined for hundreds of water rescues across the affected region, and at least three people were rescued after being stranded in trees along the Black River in Reynolds County.
- More than 150 people airlifted from Camp Taum Sauk.
- About 20 people involved in the Bearcat Getaway collapse; reports indicate no major injuries.
- Three people rescued from trees on the Black River.
- One woman in Crawford County reported missing after a house was swept from its foundation.
What officials are watching next
Meteorologists warned that if more heavy rains move into southeast Missouri overnight, communities already soaked will face considerable additional flood impacts. Several major roads in the region were reported impassable, complicating response and recovery work.
| County | Reported Rainfall |
|---|---|
| Crawford | 6–12 inches |
| Iron | 6–12 inches |
| Madison | 6–12 inches |
| Reynolds | 6–12 inches |
| Wayne | 6–12 inches |
Officials urged residents and visitors in low-lying or flood-prone areas to heed warnings, avoid traveling through standing or moving water and to have multiple ways to receive weather alerts. Recovery efforts and damage assessments are expected to continue into the weekend as communities begin cleanup and officials determine longer-term impacts to roads, utilities and recreation sites.
Local emergency managers and state agencies will provide updates as crews complete sweeps of affected areas and more information becomes available about property damage and any additional missing-person reports.
