Flash flood emergency issued for compromised dam in Mississippi

A flash flood emergency has been issued for a compromised dam along Anchor Lake in southern Mississippi, where emergency officials are urging residents to evacuate, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).

The emergency was issued Thursday afternoon for part of Pearl River County, north of the Louisiana state line. The NWS office in New Orleans called it a “life-threatening situation” and urged people in the area to take immediate action.

The warning area includes parts of the area near McNeill and Carriere, according to a map released by forecasters. The emergency was listed as affecting an estimated 1,482 people.

“This is a FLASH FLOOD EMERGENCY for a compromised dam along Anchor Lake in Pearl River County,” the weather service said. “Emergency Management is encouraging residents in the area to evacuate.”

Forecasters had warned earlier Thursday that a particularly dangerous and life-threatening flash flood situation was unfolding across parts of southern Mississippi and southeastern Louisiana, especially east of Interstate 55.

A flood watch remains in effect through Friday morning for most of southeastern Louisiana and all of southwestern and coastal Mississippi. The weather service said considerable flash flooding is likely and catastrophic flooding is possible in some areas.

The flooding threat comes as the remnants of Arthur move into southwest Louisiana, bringing heavy rain and dangerous conditions across parts of the Gulf Coast. Forecasters also said a tornado watch remained in effect until 5 p.m. for areas along and east of the Pearl River.

Conditions are expected to improve later Thursday into the overnight hours as the heaviest rainfall threat decreases, but forecasters warned that saturated ground could still lead to isolated flash flooding into the weekend, especially with additional storms capable of producing rainfall rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour.