Strong thunderstorms and heavy rain caused significant flooding in southwestern Kentucky on Wednesday, breaking one daily rainfall record and prompting the authorities to scramble to rescue residents from rising waters.

“Major flooding like many have never seen is occurring” in Graves County, along Kentucky’s border with Tennessee, the sheriff’s office said, adding that a flash flood emergency was in effect.

The National Weather Service described the scene as a “particularly dangerous situation.”

The 11.28 inches of rain that fell in Graves County broke a 24-hour rainfall record for Kentucky, the Weather Service in Paducah said. The previous 24-hour record was 10.48 inches of rainfall in March 1997 in Louisville.

The storms on Wednesday produced “an incredible amount of water in a very short duration unfortunately,” the Weather Service said on Wednesday afternoon.

There were no immediate reports of deaths or injuries, according to Trooper Sarah Burgess, a spokeswoman for Kentucky State Police Post 1, which covers 11 counties in western Kentucky.

“It’s a lot of water. It’s a lot of rain,” Trooper Burgess said. “This is definitely the most water I have seen in this area in my recent memory.”

About six water rescues were completed, said Sheriff Jon Hayden of Graves County.

At least one shelter was opened for displaced residents.

A flash flood warning was also issued for parts of western Kentucky, including Carlisle County and northeastern Hickman County until the afternoon, the Weather Service said.

Video and photos of the flood damage in Mayfield, the seat of Graves County, showed submerged vehicles in neighborhoods and rushing water meeting the steps and front doors of homes.

Photos shared on social media and by local TV outlets also showed roadways that had turned into flowing streams, making them impassable. The Weather Service said that several roads throughout Marshall County were closed because of flooding.

Trooper Burgess said there were roads flooding that wouldn’t typically do so.

“That tells us that this is pretty significant,” she said.

The Weather Service in Paducah urged drivers to “turn around, don’t drown when encountering flooded roads.”

Severe weather began sweeping across southwestern Kentucky around midnight, said Keith Cooley, a meteorologist with the Weather Service in Paducah.

“We actually have several reports of heavy rainfall coming through there,” he said. “We’ve had some severe weather reports, too, with some hail and damaging winds overnight.”

On Twitter, Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky asked residents to “pray for Mayfield and areas of Western Kentucky impacted by significant flooding from last night’s storms.”

He added that crews were working to assess the damage.

“Just like every challenge we’ve faced, we will be there for all those affected,” he said.

A tornado swept through Mayfield in December 2021, killing several people in a candle factory and destroying shops and homes that had stood for at least 100 years.