Catastrophic flooding in Minnesota leaves

Flooding that Minnesota Governor Tim Walz has described as “catastrophic” has engulfed much of the state, leaving “entire communities under water.”

Officials in Waterville said their area is experiencing the worst flooding in its history and that the Minnesota National Guard has been activated to help with the death toll. Walz declared a peacetime emergency for the state over the weekend, which allowed the National Guard to deploy.

“Across the state, the intense rain has had catastrophic effects. Flooding has left entire communities under feet of water, causing severe property damage and numerous road closures,” Walz said.

The emergency declaration says Waterville, which is nestled between Lake Tetonka and Lake Sakatah in Le Sueur County, received between 14 and 18 inches of rain, pushing those lakes and the Cannon River to “uncontrollable levels.”

“Residents have been evacuated and the flood has already caused significant damage,” said the statement issued on Saturday.

“It’s all hands on deck here in Waterville. The water continues to rise and officials say they don’t know when it’s going to stop,” CBS News Minnesota’s Jason Rantala reported Sunday.

“We just have a lot of water,” said Le Sueur County Commissioner David Preisler.

Locals have posted countless photos and videos of the damage on social media. One resident said Sunday evening that “hundreds of cabins and houses” have been flooded, along with much of the downtown area. At his home, he said there was about 18 inches of water in the shed and around the cabin.

“The water is 3+ feet deep in some places,” they wrote on Facebook. “Some roads in the city are impassable and they have fire lines that limit access in many places.”

CBS News Minnesota also reported that officials called it that The worst flooding event to ever hit Waterville after 1,000 people volunteered to fill sandbags over the weekend to prevent further damage.

The National Weather Service says the weather playing for flooding across Minnesota may not be over yet. The early Monday morning forecast shows a slight risk of severe thunderstorms during the evening hours, and the service says if storms form, “they are likely to have severe to severe weather.” Local river levels are also still rising and flooding remains a concern, forecasters said.