Sunday night rain pushed the Dan River of its banks in some areas Monday, with further flooding expected as the river was predicted to crest between midnight and 1 a.m. Tuesday.
On Monday afternoon, several roads and trails were already closed.
The Riverwalk Trail at Dan Daniel Memorial Park was closed, the trail so flooded the sign and bicycle rack look like they are floating in the middle of the river.
Anglers Park is completely closed, with the road into the park barricaded. From a road that overlooks road into the park, the soccer fields appear more suitable for water polo — they are completely underwater.
Bernard Brown, director of Danville Emergency Services, said Trade Street has been closed in anticipation of flooding. The parking lot at Danville Plaza Shopping Center was flooded in front and behind the Harris Teeter store, and the storm drainage system had backed up on the northern side of the front parking lot, leaving a huge pond in the middle of the lot.
Brown said the Dan River is considerably higher than normal.
“The depth at the river gauge at Anglers Park is normally five to seven feet,” Brown said, adding that depths vary are different points in the Dan River. “Right now, it’s at 20-21 feet.”
The National Weather Service reports that flood stage on the Dan River is considered be 17 feet.
Brown said the weather service originally predicted the river would crest at about 27 feet, but lowered that estimate to a peak of about 25-feet, 4-inches as of 4 p.m. — a high that matches the crest the river last reached on Jan. 1, 2007, according to the NWS.
Flooding can be hazardous to drivers and pedestrians, Brown warns.
“Please don’t drive through standing or moving water,” Brown said. “If water gets in the engine compartment, the car will stall.”
Moving water is especially dangerous, he said.
“It just takes a couple of inches of water to move a car,” Brown said.
Brown said walking through water, whether it is standing or moving, is also dangerous. Depths are difficult to judge, and so is the speed of the water.
“It’s moving faster than you think, and can pull your feet right out from under you,” Brown said.
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