As last of Beryl moves east, Michigan left to dry out, consider climate issues

In much of Michigan, the flood warnings turned out to be just that — warnings ‒ as Hurricane Beryl swept across the state after making landfall in Texas.

For the few areas in Michigan there were swamped in Wednesday’s storm comes the cleanup. Then it’s more heat for all of metro Detroit this weekend.

“Yes, the remnants of Beryl are now off to the east,” Sara Schultz, a National Weather Service meteorologist in White Lake Township, said Thursday morning.

But not every community was spared. “We had some flooding, in Macomb County — and Genesee.”

And in East Lansing, flooding forced the city council to cancel its meeting.

It was even worst in Vermont, where later Wednesday, heavy rain took out bridges and washed out an apartment building. The damage came, news outlets noted, just a year after catastrophic rainfall had inundated parts of the state.

Climate change concerns

Rising global temperatures are leading to more severe and frequent storms, more rainfall and flooding, what various reports in the last year have called “hidden risks” to cities and millions of homeowners, as flooding poses risks to infrastructure and suggest that building codes may be outdated.

Moreover, it also has raised concerns about property insurance. Insurance Business magazine reported in May that premiums are rising, while profit margins for insurance companies across the country are falling, prompting some carries to drop coverage in certain areas.

Flooding, which the City of Detroit acknowledges on it’s website that it “regularly faces,” is vulnerable, with about a third of its population living in poverty. The website warns: “Flooding can happen anytime from the spring through the fall — even winter if warmer than usual temperatures lead to rain rather than snowfall.”

More: FEMA releases Wayne County flood maps, urges residents to review them

On Wednesday, — like eastbound Interstate 94 near downtown Detroit — were temporarily closed. Photos posted to social media showed homes, one in Genesee Township, partially submerged in the floodwaters.

The weather service said 5-7 inches of rain fell in Genesee County, which was one of worst-hit areas. All the water there turned roadways and low-lying areas into temporary lakes, which, WNEM-TV reported, at least one person got out a canoe to paddle around in.

Roundup of rainfall totals

Downriver, in Southgate, rainfall for a 24-hour period ending late Wednesday were about 3.5 inches, and in Detroit, about 1.5, the weather service said.

Other rainfall totals included:

• Caro, 3 inches,
• Chesterfield, 2.8,
• Farmington Hills, 2,
• Flint, 3.3,
• Lapeer, 4.9,
• Schwartz Creek, 3.9,
• and White Lake, 2.7.

There’s a possibility for another storm Friday afternoon, the weather service said, and then, during the weekend, which is expected to be mostly dry, more heat and humidity, with high temperatures approaching or exceeding 90 degrees.

More: As Michigan warms up, groups want FEMA to recognize extreme heat as ‘major disaster’

A few thousand utility customer in Michigan lost power Wednesday, but by early Thursday most had been restored, leaving only a tiny fraction of state residents without electricity. DTE reported less than 1,200 customers without electricity, and Consumers Energy, about 3,500.

There’s some good news, though. For those seeking — or needing — to dry out and clean up their homes and businesses, there likely is some respite: Thursday’s forecast calls for dry weather, warm sunshine and highs in the low 80s.

Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or fwitsil@freepress.com.