A tornado watch has been issued by the National Weather Service for several Kansas counties, including Reno.
The watch will remain in effect until 10 p.m. Tuesday.
Counties included in the watch are:
BARTON
BUTLER
CHASE
CHAUTAUQUA
COWLEY
ELK
ELLSWORTH
GREENWOOD
HARPER
HARVEY
KINGMAN
LINCOLN
MARION
MCPHERSON
RENO
RICE
RUSSELL
SALINE
SEDGWICK
SUMNER
SOUTH HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The high water table and persistent rain are causing problems in South Hutchinson.
According to Public Works Superintendent James Dull, the flooding has caused the sanitary sewer lines to back up in some part of the city. Dull says they are working with KDHE to take care of the problem.
Dull also reports that the storm sewer system is being stressed to the limit. They are pumping water directly over the levee into the Arkansas River.
The city is asking residents to do anything possible to conserve water until water levels decline.
HAVEN, Kan. — Summer meals are available once again in Haven. The summer lunch program began Tuesday and will continue Monday through Friday. Breakfast is served from 7:15 a.m. until 9:15 a.m. and lunch from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. 
All lunches will be served at Haven Grade School and are available free of charge to anyone ages 1 through 18. No registration is required and lunches are free.
The district will serve lunches through Aug. 9. Last year, the district served more than 6,000 meals to area youth.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Rivers are back on the rise again after a weekend of rain. The Arkansas River is expected to keep rising throughout the rest of the week.
As of Tuesday morning, the river was forecast to crest at 12.3 feet at Hutchinson and 12.6 feet in Haven. At that level, there will be major flooding along the river in Haven.
Along Cow Creek, the waterway is forecast to crest at 11.9 feet by tomorrow afternoon. This will cause the usual flooding of roads between Nickerson and Hutchinson.
The Little Arkansas River is expected to crest at 22.7 feet Tuesday afternoon and then could fall depending on how much rain falls this week.
The water continues to come into Cheney Reservoir. As of Tuesday morning, the lake was at the top of the flood pool at 1,429 feet.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — It has been protecting Hutchinson from flooding for almost 65 years.
The Arkansas River and Cow Creek floodways and levee systems have kept the downtown area and other parts of Hutchinson from being inundated by the two waterways since they were christened in 1955.
Brian Clennan with Hutchinson Public Works says the levee system is doing its job. “The levee system is holding up well,” Clennan said. “We are seeing quite a bit of seepage on the dry side of the levee with the high groundwater table and ground saturation, but nothing we’re concerned with.”
Clennan says the levee has shown no signs of any damage but they will have to wait until the water fully recedes before they can do a complete inspection. “We’re not seeing any damage to the levee system right now. As the flood waters recede then we may (see) some,” Clennan added.
Clennan says the levee is monitored 24-7 and will continue to be watched until the flooding is over.
Construction of the levee began in 1952 and the city took ownership of the system in 1955 from the Army Corps of Engineers. In 1953, it was estimated the value of the property protected by the levee system was $134 million.
Severe Thunderstorm Warning
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BULLETIN – IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
Severe Thunderstorm Warning
National Weather Service Wichita KS
513 AM CDT Sun May 26 2019
The National Weather Service in Wichita has issued a
* Severe Thunderstorm Warning for…
Western McPherson County in central Kansas…
Northern Reno County in south central Kansas…
Rice County in central Kansas…
Southeastern Ellsworth County in central Kansas…
* Until 615 AM CDT.
* At 513 AM CDT, a severe thunderstorm was located 8 miles southwest
of Alden, or 11 miles southwest of Sterling, moving northeast at 55
mph.
HAZARD…60 mph wind gusts and quarter size hail.
SOURCE…Radar indicated.
IMPACT…Hail damage to vehicles is expected. Expect wind damage
to roofs, siding, and trees.
* Locations impacted include…
Lyons, Sterling, Inman, Nickerson, Little River, Sylvia, Alden,
Windom, Plevna, Raymond, Willowbrook and Mcpherson Airport.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS…
For your protection move to an interior room on the lowest floor of a
building.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Hutch Rec announced Friday afternoon that, because of cold water temperatures, both the Salt City Splash and Buhler Municipal Pool will not open on Saturday as scheduled.
Officials say the current water temperatures at the facilities are around 65 degrees, which is too cold for safe operation.
Pool staff at both facilities will monitor water temperatures and post updates for Sunday’s opening by Saturday at 4 p.m. on both facility Facebook pages.
WATCH COUNTY NOTIFICATION FOR WATCH 233
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WICHITA KS
218 PM CDT FRI MAY 24 2019
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155-173-191-205-207-250300-
/O.NEW.KICT.TO.A.0233.190524T1918Z-190525T0300Z/
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE HAS ISSUED TORNADO WATCH 233 IN
EFFECT UNTIL 10 PM CDT THIS EVENING FOR THE FOLLOWING AREAS
IN KANSAS THIS WATCH INCLUDES 20 COUNTIES
IN CENTRAL KANSAS
CHASE MARION MCPHERSON
IN SOUTH CENTRAL KANSAS
BUTLER COWLEY HARPER
HARVEY KINGMAN RENO
SEDGWICK SUMNER
IN SOUTHEAST KANSAS
ALLEN CHAUTAUQUA ELK
GREENWOOD LABETTE MONTGOMERY
NEOSHO WILSON WOODSON
THIS INCLUDES THE CITIES OF ANDOVER, ANTHONY, ARKANSAS CITY,
ATTICA, AUGUSTA, BEL AIRE, CEDAR VALE, CHANUTE, COFFEYVILLE,
COTTONWOOD FALLS, DERBY, EL DORADO, EUREKA, FREDONIA, GRENOLA,
HARPER, HAYSVILLE, HILLSBORO, HOWARD, HUMBOLDT, HUTCHINSON,
INDEPENDENCE, IOLA, KINGMAN, LONGTON, MADISON, MARION, MCPHERSON,
MOLINE, NEODESHA, NEWTON, PARK CITY, PARSONS, PEABODY, ROSE HILL,
SEDAN, STRONG CITY, VALLEY CENTER, WELLINGTON, WICHITA, WINFIELD,
AND YATES CENTER.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Boys and Girls Club of Hutchinson announced this week that it still has one open spot for a team to participate in the par 3 golf tournament.
The event, which is a fundraiser for Boys and Girls Club, is Friday, May 31, at noon at Cottonwood Hills.
According to Skip Wilson with Boys and Girls Club, more than $100,000 in prizes will be given out. Cost to play is $75 per person or $300 per team.
For more information, visit bghutch.z2systems.com.
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Inmates and staff from Hutchinson Correctional Facility took time to assist in the local flood efforts in the city of Hutchinson and Reno County. The group filled 6,000 sandbags at the Hutchinson Correctional Facility’s South Unit.
According to a news release, 31 South Unit inmates volunteered for this project after returning from working 8 to 10 hours during the day.
Several areas of the city are expected to see flooding because of high river levels that have cut off storm drainage. The city of Hutchinson also has sandbags available just behind the city offices on Avenue C.
