100 Year Flood

Over the weekend, central Indiana was dealt the harshest weather I have ever seen. Massive flooding and a few tornadoes ripped through the area. Fortunately, my house was not harmed. The winds knocked down a few trees around me, but none of mine. The biggest damage was in town along the various creeks and rivers. Many Cummins buildings, including the one I work in, is next to a river in town.

As you can see from the pictures, the first floor of the Cummins Tech Center (and its basement), as well as the basement of the Cummins Engine Plant have completely flooded. Much of our testing and measurement equipment, labs, and controls were no doubt destroyed, along with peoples desks, some test vehicles, parts inventory, etc. I expect there were about $15 million in damages between the two buildings. Behind the Tech Center are several streets of homes which were flooded up to the roof line. The bridge by the hospital was destroyed, and the hospital flooded to the point that it was evacuated and all patients moved to a hospital in a nearby town. All bridges in and out of Columbus were flooded, making the town an island for several days. Most bridges were re-opened today, but many businesses are closed.

I have volunteered to go help shovel the mud from the basement of CEP tomorrow. We are only allowed to work for half a day as we are experiencing 90+ degree days with 90% humidity, and the HVAC and air handling in the building are out of commission. We are also trying to get people coordinated to rebuild homes which were damaged by the flood. Cummins has been good about doing low income housing projects in the past, and I expect they will do the same this time around.