Overnight Flooding across Kansas City

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Trapped owners of Coach’s talk of ordeal from inside flooded bar



After floodwaters crashed through the wall of Coach’s Bar & Grill early Thursday, Brian Darby started sending out goodbye texts to his family.

“It’s the most scared I’ve ever been,” Darby said on the telephone as he waited along with business partner Chris Donna-Louise Carle, to be rescued by firefighters.

After seeing that heavy rains had fallen across the area, the two had gone to check for possible flooding and save paperwork at the bar near 103rd Street and Wornall Road . But rising floodwaters quickly trapped them.

“We got here about 4 a.m. and I wasn’t too worried,” he said. “The water started coming in the parking lot.”

He and Carle started moving paperwork to the bar as the water started rising. At one point, it reached about a foot high inside. Shortly thereafter, flood waters crashed a wall and rushed in.

“We ran and jumped on top of the bar,” he said. “We saw very quickly that it wouldn’t hold us so we jumped onto equipment.”

The water was rising so quickly, so they tore into the ceiling where they were waiting for firefighters to come rescue them.

“It’s a total loss,” Darby said of the bar and grill. “We regret the fire department has to risk lives to save us.”

He also expressed concern for Coach’s employees. He said trying to save the paperwork was all for naught because of the damage.

Overnight storms dumped a deluge of heavy rains across the Kansas City area, leading to serious flooding, several closed roads and water rescues early Thursday.

The Kansas City Fire Department responded to numerous water rescues early Thursday — from 43rd Street in midtown Kansas City south to 155th and Troost, including the Ward Parkway area, Kansas City Fire Chief Paul Berardi said on Twitter.

Shortly after 6 a.m., the Kansas City Fire Department responded to the area of 103rd Street and Wornall Avenue on reports of at least two vehicles in Indian Creek.