Robeson County has been under a National Weather Service flood watch now for a week straight — and on and off for the last two weeks. This is not a complaint, rather it is praise on several levels.

First, Mother Nature is a finicky woman; she loves sun, she loves rain, she loves wind and sometimes all at the same time.

Robeson County has been lucky not to see any hurricanes this season (knock on wood), however, in the last week, we’ve seen enough rain in the last week to remind us that we should be prepared.

Now, the rain has been greatly needed for local growers in our ag industry especially when we continue to be in a severe drought. The problem is, too much water can be as damaging to crops as well as not enough.

The economic impact here of a poor harvest is too early to tell, but anyone with any history in the area understands the value of dollars — or lack thereof — coming into our communities from the ag sector. Water from the skies above plays a big role in how many of those dollars will be realized locally.

Now, farmers aren’t the only ones who keep a close eye on the forecast and cloudy weather, it’s all the rest of us. We, who grow gardens in our backyards. We who live in floodplains along the Lumber River or other lowland, flood-prone areas. “Flood” is almost a four-letter word. It certainly is for those still recovering from 2016’s Hurricanes Matthew and Florence.

By the way, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which monitors the Lumber River, reports that the river level is at 10.09 feet at the Lumberton monitoring station. The Flood Stage is 13 feet. The river is expected to crest at 12 feet on Monday — assuming we don’t get any more deluges like those we’ve seen in recent days.

From the USDA:

11 feet: Low land flooding will occur along the river.

13 feet: Low land flooding will occur along the river. The flood waters may affect some residential property as water backs up into the drainage ditches in the city.

15 feet: Flood waters will affect yards in the Pines area, Cox Pond area and along River Road. Additional residential property will be affected between the Pepsi plant and the river on the east side of Lumberton.

16 feet: Flooding worsens in the Pines and Cox Pond areas as well as along River Road. Flooding also worsens between the Pepsi plant and the river on the east side of town. In addition, Chickenfoot Road, Hestertown Road and Noir Street will have flood waters on them.

17 feet: Flooding worsens west of Interstate 95 and water may begin surrounding homes in the Pines and Cox Pond areas. Homes off River Road may become isolated by flood waters. Water may also affect yards off Planetarium Road and fields off deep Branch Road. East of Lumberton, the lowest homes in the Pines area may be flooded and homes may be surrounded by water in the Pines area and between the Pepsi plant and the river. Chickenfoot Road, Noir Street and Hestertown Road may be impassable.

18 feet: Flood waters deepen in the Pines and Cox Pond areas as well as along River Road. Flood waters may affect Carthage Road. Several homes will become isolated or inundated between the Pepsi plant and the river. Chickenfoot Road, Hestertown Road and Noir Street will be closed.

19 feet: Extensive flooding occurs along the river. Over 50 dwellings will be inundated or isolated due to the flood waters and several roads will be closed especially in the Pines area and Cox Pond area. Carthage Road may be completely covered with water.

26 feet: Interstate 95 is flooded where it crosses the river between exit 17 and exit 19.

Now, while big storms are certainly possible and have occurred here in Robeson County, our civic leaders have been proactive in preparing for unknown disasters sure to come our way — if not from storm clouds moving in from the Midwest, than those that push up the East Coast in the forms of tropical storms and hurricanes.

In Lumberton, the floodgate project is a good example of what the city is doing to keep the Lumber River out of Lumberton.

We’ve also seen crews cleaning out local ditches that carry water away from populated areas.

These are the kinds of things we encourage — especially as weather experts warn of a busier-than-normal hurricane season.

We also urge residents to keep an eye on the forecasts and updates. The Robeson County Sheriff’s Office has an app for mobile devices that regularly sends out urgent weather conditions.

Keep this in mind: A “flood watch” means conditions are right for flooding. Upgrading conditions to a “flood warning” means flooding has been observed; seek higher ground now.

Stay safe.