LAKEWOOD, Ohio — I-90 westbound in Lakewood near McKinley Avenue shut down Wednesday night after a deluge of rain flooded the highway and trapped more than a half dozen vehicles.
“It was pretty intense,” said John Dever, who lives near a highway overpass close to the McKinley exit.
From his second-story window, he could see floodwaters and backed-up traffic.
“We saw a semi parked there for at least an hour without moving, and we also saw other cars floating in the water,” he said.
Around 8:45 p.m., firefighters and police were called to I-90 westbound near the McKinley Avenue exit for multiple reports of flooding and vehicles stuck in the water.
“I never really imagined going down there that we would activate the water response team to the freeway,” said Lakewood Assistant Fire Chief Nicholas Sambula.
Fire crews blocked off the highway to prevent more cars from driving into the waterlogged road. The water response team used boats to rescue 10 people from seven vehicles stuck in the water, including one car that was nearly submerged.
“That vehicle had water so high that we were unable to open the door because of the pressure of the water," Sambula explained. "So our crews broke the windows out, got her out and conducted rescues on the subsequent vehicles.”
Police and fire redirected nearly 200 cars from the interstate. No injuries were reported.
The highway was shut down in both directions until the water receded. It reopened around 1:30 a.m.
Sambula told News 5 that the stretch of highway floods periodically, but even his most senior crew member had never seen it to that extent.
“I’ve seen it flooded, but never to the point where it was chest-deep to get people out of the vehicles,” he said.
In July, water pooled in the same area during a storm, limiting travel in at least one lane and backing up traffic.
News 5 has reported on other flash floods on I-90 near McKinley Ave in recent years. In 2016, a driver slammed into a Lakewood police cruiser after hydroplaning near the exit.
ODOT said much of the highway flooding is caused by debris clogging storm drains. Wednesday evening, first responders said they didn't find any obstruction, and the issue was likely caused by the heavy rain in a short period of time.
“Anytime you get this much water, it’s going to back any drainage system up,” said Brent Kovacs, public information officer for ODOT's 12th District.
Kovacs said crews routinely clean garbage and debris from storm drains. Next week, ODOT plans to add mesh grates to inlets to prevent drains from backing up.
He also explained the department is planning a larger overhaul between West Boulevard and Hilliard Road in 2024 to completely replace the pavement and drainage system.
“The new project will bring up the drainage system to modern standards, which can handle the heavy rains which we can get really quickly, compared to when it was built back in the 60s,” Kovacs said.
Drivers and neighbors in the area said they're looking forward to the improvements. In the meantime, some said they plan to stay off the highway during heavy rainfall.
“We had friends over last night, and we told them just to take Lake Road to go West or Detroit… just stay off the highway,” Dever said.
RELATED: Photos: Storms rock Northeast Ohio
