13 June 2008

This isn't good

The great flood of 1993 was - if memory serves - the largest flooding of the Mississippi River in recorded history.

The mighty waters devasted the surrounding countryside for miles in every direction, overtaking levees, bridges, houses and fields. Now it seems the river is ready to flood again, only fifteen years later.

Locks and dams on the river have been closed between Fulton, Illinois and Clarksville, Missouri. The City of Quincy has declared a "state of emergency" and Adams county has declared a "state of disaster." Quincyans have begun sand bagging (between 6:00 a.m. and 7:30 this morning 1,200 bags had been filled) and Memorial Bridge, which crosses the Mississippi into Missouri, is expected to be shut down today. Governor Blagojevich will arrive in Quincy this afternoon to inspect the area and make his decision on State action.

The river is expected to crest today at 29.2 feet; the record level in 1993 was 32 feet. The waters are expected to reach 30.2 feet by Wednesday.

And the rain only seem to keep coming.

More news here.

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