The Lost River Cave tour boats sat idle again after a long week of extreme April rain that caused flood waters to surge 60 feet above normal. Water submerged the cave and many of the park’s walking trails.
“When our boat tours aren’t running, we’re not bringing in revenue,” Justin Jennings, Lost River Cave CEO, told the Bowling Green Daily News. “This is prime spring break season … we love seeing those spring break travelers, and now all we get to do is turn them away.”
Other local businesses across Bowling Green have also felt the effects of extreme weather. Habitat for Humanity ReStore was forced to relocate after its previous location suffered from frequent flooding, and the National Corvette Museum experienced a 30-foot sinkhole in 2014.
Scientists say events like these are consistent with long-term climate trends showing heavier rainfall and more intense storms.
“Climate change just means that the weather variables we see in the atmosphere are changing over long periods,” Greg Goodrich, an associate professor and the meteorology program leader at Western Kentucky University, said. “Global warming is just referring to the global temperatures.”
As global warming continues to affect the climate, the amount of moisture in the air increases, resulting in more precipitation, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Lost River Cave is highly susceptible to flooding due to its position at the lowest point across a 55-square-mile area. Lost River is defined as a watershed, a land area that drains or sheds water into a specific body of water, because of its lower elevation.
In February, water levels rose 40 feet above normal. Just weeks later, flooding reached 60 feet above average, the highest level ever recorded at the cave.
Habitat for Humanity ReStore also experienced flooding. It was forced to relocate after its old location experienced intense and frequent flooding.
“Our old store flooded quite a bit,” Jared McDuffy, the store manager, said. “The dock would flood anytime that it would rain substantially, so we couldn’t back our truck up to unload. We couldn’t run our truck.”
Extreme weather events don’t only affect the surface. Sinkholes, like the one the National Corvette Museum experienced in 2014, are formed and influenced by water. Areas with karst terrain, regions where the rocks below the surface can be naturally dissolved, have an increased risk of sinkhole development.
“A sinkhole is a depression in the ground that has no natural external surface drainage,” according to the United States Geological Survey, a department within the U.S. Department of the Interior. “Basically, this means that when it rains, all of the water stays inside the sinkhole and typically drains into the subsurface.”
Limestone, which comprises 50% of surface rocks in Kentucky, is particularly susceptible to erosion due to its high porosity. Limestone is a sedimentary rock called carbonate, which can be easily dissolved by groundwater.
Flooding is Kentucky’s most common and costly natural disaster, according to the Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet. The EPA also found that heavy precipitation events and intense flooding are likely to become increasingly common.
Intense flooding events have more adverse effects than many people realize. Moving water, including storm runoff, can dislodge, relocate, and deposit sediment and other materials. This movement causes soil erosion, which can be detrimental to plant life.
Standing water also threatens plant life. Oxygen becomes excluded from plants’ roots when intense flooding occurs. Lack of oxygen results in hypoxia, oxygen deficiency, according to the University of Missouri Integrated Pest Management.
Most wildlife can move to higher ground during flooding, but extreme flooding events pose a risk to nests and young or developing animals.
The financial impact of climate change is evident. Lost River Cave’s primary income shifted to donations and gift shop sales when boat tours were forced to remain grounded.
Bowling Green Habitat ReStore experienced a round of severe weather approximately two years ago. Although a cleanup crew helped reopen the next day, about $5,000 worth of products were damaged.
“There were some straight-line winds, and I believe a small tornado,” McDuffy said. “It peeled back our roof, and the rain got in and flooded our floor about three to four inches.”
Several studies have been conducted to determine how at risk local areas are in relation to climate change. The most recent results from the Fifth National Climate Assessment label Kentucky and the rest of the Southeast as particularly vulnerable to climate change. The assessment also examines the effect that climate change will have on ecosystems.
“Together with other stressors, climate change is harming the health and resilience of ecosystems, leading to reductions in biodiversity and ecosystem services,” the assessment stated.
A Florida study in 2018 analyzed the correlation between sinkholes, like the one at the Corvette Museum, and global warming caused by climate change.
“The impact of climate change on sinkhole occurrence is expected, because rising temperatures will change natural hydrological processes, enhance dissolution of limestone, and promote soil failure,” the case study stated.
The study also explained how global warming contributes to the dissolution of bedrock, which increases sinkhole collapse, especially in limestone or dolomite areas.
Both heavy rain and drought can contribute to flooding patterns and sinkhole formation. Due to its climate, Kentucky frequently experiences both of these precipitation extremes, which increases its risk for sinkholes.
The National Corvette Museum experienced a 67% increase in visitors through the five years following the sinkhole. The National Corvette Museum embraced the natural disaster by converting the sinkhole into an exhibit.
“Ground to Sky: The Sinkhole Reimagined,” was displayed in the museum to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the disaster. The museum displayed the exhibit from June 2024 to September 2024.
Local businesses are adjusting to the changing climate as weather events increase in severity and frequency. From tourist spots to nonprofit stores, Bowling Green’s businesses are finding new ways to weather the storm, one challenge at a time.
