Metro creeks reach flood stage

By Megan Matteucci and Marcus K. Garner

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Heavy rain has spurred the National Weather Service to issue a flood warning for Peachtree Creek in Buckhead until Wednesday morning.

Creeks in Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb and Gwinnett counties have reached flood stage and are continuing to rise, the weather service said Tuesday night.

As of 9:30 p.m. Tuesday, Peachtree Creek was at 16.5 feet and rising, forecasters said.

The creek, which is near the intersections of Northside Drive and Peachtree Battle Avenue, reaches flood stage at 17 feet, and Woodward Way becomes impassable, yards on Hanover West Drive and Woodward flood, and Atlanta Memorial Park floods out, the weather service said.

"That's a low-lying area, and it floods anytime we get this much rain," said Janet Ward, spokeswoman for the City of Atlanta Department of Watershed Management.

Residents should be prepared for possible flooding and be extra careful driving, forecasters said.

As much as 2 inches of overnight precipitation is expected when rain ends Wednesday morning, and between 3 and 5 inches will have fallen when the storm system -- which began Monday night -- passes, forecaster Jessic Fieux said.

The National Weather Service issued a flood warning Tuesday evening for Allatoona Creek in Cobb, North Fork Peachtree Creek near Atlanta and Crooked Creek near Norcross.

As of 6 p.m., Crooked Creek had reached its flood stage at 11 feet, the Weather Service said.

At 5 p.m., Allatoona Creek, which is off Mars Hill Road, had reached its flood stage at 13 feet, meteorologist Jessica Fieux said. North Fork, which is in Fulton and DeKalb, had reached its flood stage at 12 feet and was continuing to rise.

Earlier Tuesday, the Weather Service issued a flood warning for Big Creek in Alpharetta.

"We're on the lookout for minor flooding tonight and it should continue to rise near 9.6 feet early Thursday," meteorologist Brian Lynn said.

The flood stage for Big Creek is 7 feet, according to the Weather Service.

The Weather Service recorded 2.23 inches of rain at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport from 7 p.m. Monday to 4 p.m. Tuesday. About 1.85 inches of rain fell at the DeKalb-Peachtree Airport during the same time period.

The rain, brought by the remnants of Tropical Storm Ida, is expected to continue Tuesday night and will begin to diminish Wednesday, forecasters said.

The Weather Service said there is no need for residents to evacuate, but warned homeowners to keep an eye on their basements and back yards.

A flash flood watch remains in effect for north and central Georgia, including Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb, Gwinnett, Clayton, Cherokee, Forsyth and Henry counties. The watch remains in effect through Wednesday morning.

The Weather Service also reported flooding in north Georgia, including Pickens, Gilmer, Lumpkin, Floyd, Union and Fannin counties.

Heavy rain also caused problems on metro area roadways Tuesday afternoon.

The Georgia Department of Transportation urged drivers to be on the lookout for standing water and low visibility.

Police responded to several wrecks on the interstates in metro Atlanta, along with an overturned tractor trailer that forced all lanes on I-75 closed in Bartow County for several hours Tuesday afternoon.