Firefighters rescue woman and child from flooded road in Cole County
The Russellville-Lohman Fire Protection District performed a water rescue Wednesday after a vehicle attempted to cross a flooded roadway on East Lohman Road.
Chief Mitchell Ott said the department was dispatched around 4 p.m. and found a woman and child sitting on top of their car. The rescue took about 15 minutes and Ott said no one was injured.
The Russellville-Lohman Fire Protection District hadn’t performed a water rescue in the past four or five years, Ott said.
Cole County Public Works Director Larry Benz said the rising water on East Lohman is connected to the Moreau River flooding.
Benz said one foot of water can sweep a car away.
The National Weather Service has issued a flood warning for the Moreau River near Jefferson City.
The warning was issued after nearly an inch of precipitation fell in the area in the past 24 hours and with more rain expected over the next 48 hours.
The warning is in effect Wednesday evening through Friday afternoon with the river expected to rise above the 17-foot flood stage. The river is expected to rise above 20.1 feet early Thursday.
The rising water will cause some road closures. Bainer and Loesch Road will be closed when the gage reaches 18 feet, Zion Road will close at 19 feet and Buffalo Road will close at 20 feet, the advisory says.
