Floods Louisiana

Thunderstorms in the Midwest and lower Ohio Valley spawned at least three tornadoes and pounded parts of Indiana with hail as big as golf balls. The tornadoes, touching down in Michigan, damaged property but caused no injuries. In Kalamazoo County, wind gusted to 59 m.p.h., while the storm knocked out power to about 6,000 homes, with Jackson the hardest-hit area.

JEAN LAFITTE, La. - Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney  toured a flood-ravaged area of the Louisiana bayou on Friday in the aftermath of the hurricane that disrupted his party's national convention in Florida.  Accompanied by his wife, Ann, the candidate rode in an SUV past submerged gas stations and flooded homes in this Mississippi River delta community near New Orleans. In some places, the water was several feet deep. Romney got out of the vehicle and had an informal roadside conversation with Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and U.S. Sen. David Vitter, both Republicans.

Flash floods forced hundreds of Fourth of July campers out of the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, and some had to be ferried across swollen streams by kayak after more than a week of heavy rain across the South. Hundreds more were still out of their homes elsewhere because of flooding caused by the remnants of Tropical Storm Allison.

About 3,000 inmates were temporarily evacuated to higher ground as waters from the swollen Mississippi River threatened to undermine a levee protecting the nation's largest prison farm. Inmates were moved to a tent city on the only bit of high ground on the 18,000-acre Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola.

About 3,000 inmates were temporarily evacuated to higher ground as waters from the swollen Mississippi River threatened to undermine a levee protecting the nation's largest prison farm. Inmates were moved to a tent city on the only bit of high ground on the 18,000-acre Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola.

Floodwaters gushed from a rain-swollen lake into the Trinity River in Texas at a record rate Thursday, but despite warnings to evacuate many residents downstream stayed home to guard against looters, authorities said. Floodwaters from Lake Livingston, about 75 miles northeast of Houston, are expected to inundate more than 200 square miles along the Trinity. At the dam, operators increased the flow through a dozen floodgates to a record 100,800 cubic feet per second by midday Thursday.

Winter storms dumped a mixture of snow and rain throughout the Pacific Northwest and into the Rockies on Saturday, while floodwaters rose in the Louisiana bayous and more snow fell in parts of the Midwest. The National Weather Service said that a slow-moving storm dumped up to a foot of snow in the Washington Cascades. Rain fell along the coasts of Washington and Oregon. Winds increased to gale force in parts of the region.

A second day of torrential rain in the New Orleans area flooded thousands of homes Wednesday in this suburb, forcing some people to swim out their windows to safety. The death toll rose to six when New Orleans city workers found the body of a child in water flowing to drainage pumps. Boats, dump trucks and National Guard trucks carried people to drier ground, cruising Slidell streets filled with rushing, murky water that lapped at window ledges.

Residents of low-lying areas along the Trinity River in southeastern Texas braced for the worst as a record 85,000 cubic feet of water per second was released from Lake Livingston to protect the dam there. The river's crest was expected to reach the dam today, and further releases from the reservoir could cause the worst flooding in 80 years.

Floodwaters that damaged at least 850 homes in southeastern Louisiana began a slow retreat in some areas Sunday, but a threat of further flooding remained. A 50% chance of rain was forecast for today in the Baton Rouge area, which was hardest hit by flooding that began on Friday after a week of rain. Flooding was worst in neighboring East Baton Rouge and Livingston parishes, the National Weather Service said. The floods were said to be the worst in the area since 1983.

Private rooms. Private baths. Free food. Sounds more like a spa than an emergency shelter to some residents of not-so-flooded areas around Catahoula Parish, La. More than 20 people have been asked to leave the refuge, which opened in an empty nursing home last week. Operators say the shelter can't afford to take care of those whose homes aren't flooded. About 60 people have come to the shelter, and parish officials are trying to make sure all of them have been forced out by flood waters.

A second day of torrential rain in the New Orleans area flooded thousands of homes Wednesday in this suburb, forcing some people to swim out their windows to safety. The death toll rose to six when New Orleans city workers found the body of a child in water flowing to drainage pumps. Boats, dump trucks and National Guard trucks carried people to drier ground, cruising Slidell streets filled with rushing, murky water that lapped at window ledges.

A storm of Amazon rain-forest proportions dumped up to 18 inches of rain in only six hours, leaving five people dead and hundreds of homes and businesses flooded in New Orleans and eight surrounding parishes. Gov. Edwin W. Edwards declared an emergency and sent National Guard troops to help in some areas. More rain was forecast, even though normal rainfall for all of May is only about five inches. "I did some research in the Amazon. . . .

A second day of heavy rain Tuesday flooded streets and homes, interrupted bus and streetcar service and closed City Hall. Two children were missing and feared drowned in rain-swollen ditches. Some areas received more than 12 inches of rain over two days. The deluge, which started during the evening rush hour Monday, caught New Orleans by surprise. The downpour abated overnight, then resumed Tuesday morning.

Flooding caused by up to 10 inches of rain forced evacuations Monday in parts of Mississippi and Louisiana, with so many roads closed that Monroe, La., officials ran out of barricades and Ouachita Parish ran out of sandbags. "In north Louisiana . . . you can't get there unless you have a boat," State Police Capt. Ronnie Jones said, adding that at least 65 roads were closed in the region.

Floodwaters gushed from a rain-swollen lake into the Trinity River in Texas at a record rate Thursday, but despite warnings to evacuate many residents downstream stayed home to guard against looters, authorities said. Floodwaters from Lake Livingston, about 75 miles northeast of Houston, are expected to inundate more than 200 square miles along the Trinity. At the dam, operators increased the flow through a dozen floodgates to a record 100,800 cubic feet per second by midday Thursday.

Flooding caused by up to 10 inches of rain forced evacuations Monday in parts of Mississippi and Louisiana, with so many roads closed that Monroe, La., officials ran out of barricades and Ouachita Parish ran out of sandbags. "In north Louisiana . . . you can't get there unless you have a boat," State Police Capt. Ronnie Jones said, adding that at least 65 roads were closed in the region.

A second day of heavy rain Tuesday flooded streets and homes, interrupted bus and streetcar service and closed City Hall. Two children were missing and feared drowned in rain-swollen ditches. Some areas received more than 12 inches of rain over two days. The deluge, which started during the evening rush hour Monday, caught New Orleans by surprise. The downpour abated overnight, then resumed Tuesday morning.

Residents of low-lying areas along the Trinity River in southeastern Texas braced for the worst as a record 85,000 cubic feet of water per second was released from Lake Livingston to protect the dam there. The river's crest was expected to reach the dam today, and further releases from the reservoir could cause the worst flooding in 80 years.

Floodwaters that damaged at least 850 homes in southeastern Louisiana began a slow retreat in some areas Sunday, but a threat of further flooding remained. A 50% chance of rain was forecast for today in the Baton Rouge area, which was hardest hit by flooding that began on Friday after a week of rain. Flooding was worst in neighboring East Baton Rouge and Livingston parishes, the National Weather Service said. The floods were said to be the worst in the area since 1983.