Waterlogged Midwest facing intense flooding through Sunday as severe storms lash region
A weekend washout continues for the final summer weekend across parts of the Midwest and Ohio Valley.
Growing Midwest flash flood threat to impact millions across multiple states
Flash Flood Warnings are in effect across multiple states as heavy rain inundates the region. FOX Weather Meteorologist Melanie Black has the latest as relentless storms continue to fire across the Midwest.
THE TAKEAWAY
- Relentless heavy rain and flooding, brought on by severe storms, is targeting millions across the Midwest and the Great Lakes through Monday.
- The Storm Prediction Center is warning of "locally considerable urban flooding" in areas such as Chicago.
The week-long firehose of storms aimed at parts of the Midwest, Plains and Ohio Valley will extend through Sunday, putting millions at risk of flash flooding as thunderstorms repeatedly track over the same corridor.
NOAA's Weather Prediction Center (WPC) has issued a Level 2 out of 4 flash flood threat for parts of the Midwest through Monday.
A widespread 3 to 5 inches of rain could still fall across the region, including Chicago, with some localized areas potentially seeing 5 to 8 inches.
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Image 1 of 5Neighborhoods in Bluffton, Indiana, flooded on Sep. 17, 2026. (Wells County Area Plan Commission/Facebook)
![Car submerged by flooding in Bluffton, Indiana on Sep. 17, 2026.]()
Image 2 of 5Car submerged by flooding in Bluffton, Indiana on Sep. 17, 2026. (Logan Nusbaumer)
![Lightning crackles as severe thunderstorms slam Lafayette, Indiana, on Sep.17, 2026.]()
Image 3 of 5Lightning crackles as severe thunderstorms slam Lafayette, Indiana, on Sep.17, 2026. (Blake)
![Neighborhoods in Bluffton, Indiana, flooded on Sep. 17, 2026.]()
Image 4 of 5Neighborhoods in Bluffton, Indiana, flooded on Sep. 17, 2026. (Wells County Area Plan Commission/Facebook)
![Neighborhoods in Bluffton, Indiana, flooded on Sep. 17, 2026.]()
Image 5 of 5Neighborhoods in Bluffton, Indiana, flooded on Sep. 17, 2026. (Wells County Area Plan Commission/Facebook)
More rain fell across Illinois, Iowa and Indiana on Saturday, creating dangerous flash flood conditions.
A Level 3 out of 4 flash flood risk was in effect across eastern Iowa, northern Illinois and far northwestern Indiana on Saturday, including the Chicago metro area, where an additional 2 to 3 inches of rain or more could fall through Monday.
KNOW YOUR FLOOD TERMINOLOGY: WHAT FLOOD WATCHES, WARNINGS AND EMERGENCIES REALLY MEAN
Some cities, like Linn Grove, Indiana, and Bluffton, Indiana, have already seen over 8.5 inches of rain since Wednesday. This means the grounds are already saturated, which makes the flood threat much more serious.
Neighborhoods in Bluffton, located 30 miles south of Fort Wayne, flooded through the day Thursday, prompting emergency sandbagging, according to the director of the Wells County Emergency Management Agency.
Photos posted by county officials appeared to show the nearby Wabash River overtopping its banks in some places, washing out several roads.
(FOX Weather)
The initial rounds of storms began at the beginning of the week, bringing flooding to parts of Western Iowa. Des Moines and Omaha have both picked up more than 3 inches of rain since Monday.
Storms are firing along a stalled front draped over eastern Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Illinois, around the western and northern edge of a persistent heat dome that has produced the warmest start to September for many states across the South and creating the week-long rainy pattern.
These storms are filled with deep tropical moisture from the Southwest and the Gulf capable of producing intense rain rates.
(FOX Weather)
The strongest storms hit Des Moines and Chicago on Saturday, as well as northern Illinois, flood-stricken northern Indiana and northwestern Ohio.
Stay with FOX Weather for the latest on the flood threat in the Midwest.