Naked before the storm, the last clumps of grass fought against the ripping grips of winds they were unwilling to move or resist. Explosions after explosion tore into the fragile soil as the raindrops bore down on the uncovered field.  Within minutes of the first wave of storm rains, the naked fields started to shed rivers of muddy waters.

Along Highway 51 between Fulton and Clinton, some 300 feet past the intersection of Highways 51 and 1529, the volume of new flood waters covered the road. This was the point where I stopped the car. Sitting there, just behind the County Highway truck with flashing lights, I watched as water kept coming from about 100 acres of farmland now acting as a large lake.

Within minutes of watching, I thought I could see a break in the volume of water flowing over the road. I started forth onto the first section of flooded highway. For the first 50 feet the water was only 1-2 inches deep. However, by the time I had gone halfway into the flooded road (about 100 feet) I realized that the car wakes were getting much higher then before.

It is times like this that you say to yourself, “Really, you drove onto a moving river of water as it was getting darker into the night. What were you thinking?” In my own defense, I had invoked one of own time proven rules of life. “It is ok to drive into moving water across a highway as long as you can see the white line of the edge of the highway.”   

However, the water was now raging around the tires at about 5-6 inches. Maybe it is now time to retire this rule of life from my more foolish days of youth. My luck held and I finally cleared the flooding to reach clear road.

Normally this would not be a story. Yet, in all my years, living in this county (Hickman Co. KY.), I have never seen this much water on this one section of road. Two factors struck me as to why this flooding was occurring. One, the storms are becoming much more extreme.

Two, these fields have just been cleared of all vegetation, tree lines, miniature water sheds, creek beds and anything that took up space. The fields had been totally scalped. The end game was to plant post line to fence line. Result of this type of farming is that there is now nothing to hold back the water.

Soon, we all need to come together as communities, counties, and region to get serious about what we do as farmers, city dwellers, factory workers against the laws of nature, as continuing misuse of these laws will have very negative and profound impact on our lives.