Ashland County - Several days of heavy rain has left many parts of Ashland County under water.

The central and southern portions of the county remain under a flood watch until tomorrow morning, forcing many homeowners to evacuate.

Eight townships have declared a State of Emergency as water levels continue to rise, including Shanagolden, Marengo, Agenda, Gordon, Jacobs, Chippewa, and Peeksville.

Glidden, located in Jacobs, has been hit the hardest. Dorothy Tanks, the Director of Emergency Management Ashland County said, “The Chippewa River has reached its banks. And the downtown area which includes several downtown homes and businesses are currently under water or experiencing flooding conditions.”

Highway 13 which runs through downtown Glidden was shut down for a day because it was under water.

The highway was re-opened this morning but authorities are still warning residents to be careful.

Portions of Highway N were also closed off and many smaller roads are detoured.

“The Assistant Fire Chief took the time and went door to door and provided some form of notification of residents and business owners of the predicted flooding conditions,” Tank said.

Tank could not give an exact amount of how much water the affected areas are experiencing.

She did say the floods caused significant damage to the roads. Emergency crews are still assessing how much the damage will cost and should have those numbers by next week.