Indiana didn't just get rained on this week — it got overwhelmed, one relentless downpour after another, until rivers that normally hug their banks broke loose like a dam giving way. State officials now say at least five people have died in the flooding, and as of Saturday, crews were still pulling stranded residents from swelling neighborhoods along the White River in Indianapolis.

A Week of Relentless Rain

The floods didn't arrive all at once — they built over days, as heavy rain kept falling and rivers and creeks across the state kept climbing in response, like a bathtub filling long after anyone remembered to check the tap.

Gov. Mike Braun confirmed Saturday that President Donald Trump plans to approve his request for federal disaster resources, a move meant to speed up both the emergency response and the long recovery still ahead. Braun said his thoughts are with the families who've lost loved ones this week, while urging Hoosiers to take the danger seriously and steer clear of floodwaters entirely.

This is a breaking news update. AP's earlier story follows below.

Rescues by the Dozens

More than 90 people — along with their pets — were pulled to safety Saturday as the White River kept rising through Indianapolis, with authorities across central Indiana describing scenes many called historic. The worst of the damage has clustered along the river corridor stretching from Hamilton County into the northern Indianapolis suburbs.

Farther east, in Delaware County, the human cost became tragically clear Friday when sheriff's deputies discovered the body of a 58-year-old woman believed to have died after attempting to drive through floodwaters — a reminder that even a few feet of moving water can prove fatal.

"An Unprecedented Event"

Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett stood alongside emergency managers Saturday, urging residents near the river to get out while they still could. He'd already declared a local emergency a day earlier as swelling creeks and streams spread across central Indiana.

"This is one of those once-in-a-lifetime type floods," Jacob Spence, director of Marion County Emergency Management, told The Associated Press. "So yeah, this is an unprecedented event and unfortunately we're setting some new records."

Rainfall That Rewrote the Record Books

Gov. Braun has formally requested a presidential emergency declaration to unlock federal resources for the response and recovery, following days of rainfall that shattered historical norms. The National Weather Service reported more than 11 inches of rain fell in some areas over just a two-day span — enough to send the White River cresting above 24 feet in Anderson and Noblesville, eclipsing marks that had stood since 1913.

More Rain on the Way

The danger hasn't passed. Flash-flood warnings and watches blanketed a wide swath of central Indiana on Saturday, and forecasters cautioned that additional showers and thunderstorms would keep rolling through the area as the day continued. In Warren County alone, 2 inches of rain fell in just six hours.

The Race Against the Crest

Forecasters expected the White River to crest Saturday evening in the Indianapolis area, where National Guard vehicles joined the rescue effort alongside fire and emergency crews. Rita Reith, a spokesperson for the Indianapolis Fire Department, put the tally at 91 people and 45 pets rescued by early afternoon — numbers that kept climbing throughout the day.

"The water is still rising, so heed the warnings," said Todd Wilson, director of the city's public works department, a blunt reminder that the crisis was far from over even as rescue totals mounted.

Scenes From the Ground

Social media captured the chaos in real time: videos showed vehicles stranded in deep water, a power pole toppled by the sheer force of the current, and once-familiar intersections transformed into rivers of their own.

Part of a Broader Midwest Storm System

Indiana's flooding didn't strike in isolation. Earlier in the week, severe storms tore through other parts of the Midwest, spawning tornadoes, dumping heavy rain, and triggering flash flooding across a stretch of the country running from the Chicago area all the way to western Pennsylvania.