Madison Co. officials provide Canton residents update on tackling flooding issue

MADISON COUNTY, Miss. (WLBT) - Madison County officials gave Canton residents an update Wednesday evening on ideas and plans for helping relieve flooding problems in their city.

Canton’s culverts and drainage system have been increasingly unable in recent years to handle heavy rains without serious flooding problems. In August 2022, storms dumped eight inches of water on the area on two separate days, flooding dozens of homes and businesses and requiring the rescue of several families trapped by water.

Just three months earlier, the US Department of Agriculture awarded the county $23.55 million for flood prevention efforts in Canton.

Now, the county has initiated early planning and environmental surveys of problem areas and will begin designing a watershed system to slow down the flow of water into trouble spots in the city.

Previous attempts to alleviate Canton’s flooding included buying out homes that had repeated flooding problems. But District 4 Supervisor Karl M. Banks told WLBT he is hoping that won’t be necessary.

Conditions are in a constant state of flux, he said, and with a more complete flooding mitigation plan, there may be additional benefits for city and county residents.

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