KSHB 41 reporter Rachel Henderson covers neighborhoods in Wyandotte and Leavenworth counties. Share your story idea with Rachel.
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Unified Government officials held a press conference Monday to talk about the city's response to Thursday’s heavy rainfall.
Mayor Tyrone Garner said there were no casualties from the flooding.
Jamie Wood, an Argentine resident, saw flooding back in May.
KSHB 41's Alyssa Jackson spoke with her then.
"It was not good," she said, referring to the condition of her basement. "That's why this basement looks like it does because there's no carpet now."
Since May’s flooding, Wood has patched up her walls and taken measures to mitigate further flooding.
"It's a pain. It's a lot of work,” she added. “Some of my neighbors…I guess they got it really bad this past week again.”
Wood’s neighborhood sits across the street from a pump station the UG claims worked properly during last week's storm.
Jeff Miles, Environmental Services Director for Kansas City, Kansas, says they've been repeatedly asked the same thing.
"We heard one question — if the system worked, why was there flooding?" Miles said. “The system wasn't broken; it was overwhelmed by a historic volume of rainfall in a very short time."
Officials said the heavy rainfall rose to levels not seen since the historic floods of 1993.
Between 7 p.m. Wednesday and 7 a.m. on Thursday, KCK residents were deluged with between seven to 12 inches in various areas.
The Kansas City, Kansas, Fire Department responded to 89 calls for service within a seven-hour window.
The Kansas City, Kansas, Police Department police department received 80 calls.
The Unified Government is waiting a report from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on the effectiveness of the infrastructure in the Argentine neighborhood.
KSHB 41 reached out to the Army Corps of Engineers for comment Monday, but did not receive a response.
In a previous update in May, officials indicated it would take 30 to 60 days for a report.
“We’ve got about three weeks until the deadline of when they said they’re going to respond back with their assessment,” Miles said. “So we’re still waiting on that as well.”
Miles could not provide a concrete estimate of the current infrastructure’s water capacity, citing the community’s aging facilities and budget constraints.
“We have a very old community,” Miles said.
The UG is also a government facing staffing shortages and budget cuts ahead of the 2026 budget approval in August.
Residents have asked for years for more money devoted to improving the city's infrastructure.
Residents like Wood are frustrated with the lack of concrete solutions.
“I just wish that… instead of excuses, we would get answers. That’s what I want,” she said.
The UG says it did not qualify for federal assistance because there were not millions of dollars worth of damage.
Instead, city officials will rely heavily on support from nonprofits.
Officials are encouraging residents to call 3-1-1 or reach out to the Red Cross.
