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Midwest eyes rising floodwaters as skies clear

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Monique Faulkner
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« on: March 20, 2008, 11:06:39 am »

Midwest eyes rising floodwaters as skies clear
Story Highlights
NEW: Numerous accidents reported in Dayton area as water freezes on roads

Flooding reported in six states; rising rivers expected to crest above flood stage

Storms head for Ohio Valley and Northeast; New England getting snow

13 deaths blamed on the storms; three other people missing, swept away by floods



     
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Residents warily watched as rivers continued to rise Thursday from heavy storms that dumped as much as a foot of rain in the Midwest and left behind more than a dozen deaths.




Two vehicles sit partially submerged in floodwaters in Marion, Illinois, on Wednesday.

1 of 3 While the first day of spring brought much needed sunshine Thursday to Ohio and other states, authorities warned that many rivers would crest well above flood stage.

Flooding also was reported Wednesday in parts of Arkansas, southern Illinois, southern Indiana, Missouri and Kentucky.

The storms moved on toward the Ohio Valley and Northeast, spreading snow over northern New England. A parallel band of heavy rain stretched from Alabama and Georgia to the Mid-Atlantic.

On Thursday morning, high water closed the eastbound lanes of Interstate 70 -- a major east-west highway -- for about 4 miles in central Ohio's Licking County, the State Highway Patrol said. The flooding was receding by midmorning, but there was no estimate of when the lanes would reopen.

Morning commuters trying to reach downtown Columbus from the south were being detoured off heavily-traveled U.S. 23, because its northbound lanes were flooded at Interstate 270.

Numerous traffic accidents were reported early Thursday in the Dayton area when water on roadways froze. The American Red Cross provided hotel vouchers for eight people who were flooded out of their apartments Wednesday in the Dayton suburb of Kettering.

Cincinnati picked up 4.7 inches of rain and then traces of snow on Wednesday.  Watch stranded truck pulled from floodwaters »

The area recovered quickly from two days of heavy rain, said Mike Mantel, director of the Service Department in Miami Township, east of Cincinnati. One township road closed Wednesday because of high water was reopened Thursday, and streams were receding, he said.

"We're in really good shape, considering the rainfall we had," Mantel said.

Days of rain turned the Midwest into a soggy mess, flooding roads, stranding motorists and displacing residents -- with a cleanup bill likely to run in the millions.  Watch flood survivor tell how her friends died »

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President Bush declared a major disaster in Missouri on Wednesday night and ordered federal aid to supplement state and local recovery efforts in areas affected by flooding. Seventy counties and the city of St. Louis also are eligible for federal funding for emergency protective measures.

Much of Ohio was under a flood warning Thursday, with some areas cautioned to watch for flash floods. Most of southwest Ohio had received more than 4 inches of rain, and officials in Butler County declared a state of emergency because of the rising waters.

Flooding along the Scioto River in Pickaway, Ross and Pike counties was expected to be the worst since January 2005. The river near Circleville was expected to remain over the 14-foot flood stage through Sunday, and Pickaway County authorities asked the Red Cross to prepare shelters for possible flood victims.

In Findlay in northwest Ohio, authorities closed off streets Wednesday after the Blanchard River had once again gone over the 11-foot flood level -- the 10th time it has done so in the last 15 months. The National Weather Service predicted the river would crest Thursday afternoon at 12.3 feet.

"It is going to take some time to dry out with this type of rain put down on saturated ground," said Beverly Poole, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service office in Paducah, Kentucky. "It's going to take a few days for the rivers and the creeks to recover."

The Ohio River at Cincinnati was expected to rise about 2 feet above flood stage by Friday. In nearby Whitewater Township, rescue workers with boats helped 16 people to safety and urged 40 to 45 more families to leave their homes.

Judy Booth, who's lived in a low-lying area of the township for 11 years, said Wednesday was the first time she's had to flee from flooding.

"You don't have no choice, you've got to go," said Booth, who was helped by fire-rescue squads who brought an inflatable boat to her water-surrounded home.  Read tips on how to survive in a flood »

Retired truck driver George Slayton, 65, said he just wasn't sure how much water from the Black River flowed into his home in Piedmont, Missouri. He only had time to grab some medication and a change of clothes.

"I believe in God and everything, but he does things sometimes that make you wonder," said Slayton, who found shelter at a church and slept on a padded pew.

Crews rescued a man clinging to a tree in the Ohio River after his truck was swept away at a boat ramp near Evansville, Indiana. He showed signs of hypothermia and could not speak clearly.

"It's hard for anybody to say how long he could have survived there," Knight Township Fire Chief Chris Wathen said. "But I do think it was fair to say he was within minutes of losing his life."

At least 13 deaths have been linked to the weather over the past few days, and three people were missing.

Five deaths were blamed to the flooding in Missouri, five people were killed in a highway wreck in heavy rain in Kentucky and a 65-year-old Ohio woman appeared to have drowned while checking on a sump pump in her home. Most of the flood water had subsided in western Kentucky by Thursday.

In southern Illinois, two bodies were found hours after floodwaters swept a pickup truck off a rural road.  See what's going on in some hardhit areas »

Searches were under way in Texas for a teenager washed down a drainage pipe, and two people were missing in Arkansas after their vehicles were swept away by rushing water. Flood water remained standing in many places in Arkansas Thursday.

In the northern Cincinnati suburb of Sharonville, water as high as 4 feet stood outside some businesses, and police contacted owners and warned them not to open for the day.


"The biggest problem has been people driving into floodwater," said Frank Young, emergency management director in Warren County, Ohio. "There are a lot of stupid people. When that sign says, `Road closed, high water,' that's what it means."

The town of Fenton, Missouri, put out a call asking volunteers to help put down sandbags against the floodwaters Thursday. Gov. Matt Blunt said state workers was checking on nursing homes and hospitals, mobilizing rescues, opening shelters, closing highways and working to ensure safe drinking water. E-mail to a friend

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/weather/03/20/severe.weather.ap/index.html
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Monique Faulkner
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« Reply #1 on: March 21, 2008, 10:17:58 am »

Midwest scrambles as flooded rivers keep rising

Story Highlights
NEW: Snowstorm cancels flights in Chicago, could bring 9 inches of snow

Many rivers in Midwest not expected to crest until the weekend

Residents, volunteers work to fill sandbags to hold back floodwaters

At least 16 people killed by floods this week; two still missing in Arkansas


Next Article in U.S. »


 Read  VIDEO  PHOTOS MAP EXPLAINER
     
FENTON, Missouri (AP) -- Flooding from rainstorms blamed for at least 16 deaths threatened to worsen Friday, with many Midwestern rivers already over their banks and the water level still climbing.



A man stands on the hood of his car Thursday in floodwaters near Dayton, Ohio. He was later rescued.

1 of 3more photos »  To the north, a fresh snowstorm blew into the Chicago area, prompting authorities to cancel flights protectively. Some flights arriving at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport were delayed by more than three hours, according to the Federal Aviation Administration Web site.

Forecasters said the storm could leave as much as 9 inches of heavy snow in the region.

A blizzard warning remained in effect in northern Maine, where fierce winds had already scattered a foot or more of snow.

"Even though it was spring yesterday, we still have winter on our doorstep," said spokeswoman Ginny Joles of Maine Public Service Co., northern Maine's major electric company.

Thursday, the first day of spring, brought much-needed sunshine to some flooded communities in the Midwest, but many swelling rivers were not expected to crest until the weekend in Arkansas, Missouri, southern Illinois, southern Indiana and Kentucky.  Watch dog rescued in Missouri »

The worst flooding happened in smaller rivers across the nation's midsection. Major channels such as the Mississippi, Missouri and Ohio Rivers saw only minor flooding.

In Fenton, another suburb, Jeff Rogles joined dozens of volunteers to fill sandbags and pile them against downtown businesses near the fast-rising Meramec River, which was expected to reach more than 20 feet above flood stage in some spots near St. Louis.

"I think we have enough volunteers out here to stave off disaster," said Rogles, 27, who joined the effort because he remembered the devastating Great Flood of 1993.

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Parts of Missouri got a foot of rain over a 36-hour period this week, causing widespread flash flooding and swelling many rivers. Five deaths have been confirmed in Missouri and hundreds of people were forced from their homes. Many families will return to find their property badly damaged or destroyed.

Valley Park is protected by a flood levee completed in 2005, but the projected 40-foot-crest there on Saturday would reach within three feet of the top of the levee. As a result, many homeowners, merchants and even schools were moving to higher ground.

Police in Pacific, Missouri, went door-to-door evacuating about 50 homes in low-lying areas.

In southwest Indiana, Todd Ferguson has spent the past three days building a sandbag wall around his sister-in-law's Evansville home.

Pigeon Creek normally flows about 200 yards from Valerie Ferguson's house, but the water had crept to within 10 feet and was not expected to crest until Sunday.

In 2006, the Fergusons piled more than 1,000 sandbags around their home and still sustained about $1,000 in damage. This time, they don't have help from Valerie's husband, Tim, who is serving in Iraq with the Indiana National Guard.

"We won two years ago, but I don't know if we're going to win this one," Todd Ferguson said. "Only time will tell, I guess."  See photos of flood's effects »

In Batesville, Arkansas, antique mall operator Marcia Weaver stood along the banks of the Spring River and watched as pieces of lives were washed away.

"There were large pieces of furniture, dressers, picnic tables from the parks. I saw a four-wheeler going down. Lots of canoes and kayaks that didn't have anybody in them," she said.

In the tiny community of Edgewater, Ohio, relatives helped Judy Lambert move out of her double-wide mobile home. Her detached garage had a foot of water in it from the flooding Great Miami River.

"We're getting all the valuables out and trying to salvage what we can," said Lambert's son, Sean, 34. The flood is "knocking at the back door."  Read tips for surviving floods »

High water also closed the eastbound lanes of Interstate 70 for about 4 miles in central Ohio's Licking County on Thursday, state police said. The floodwaters were receding by midday, but there was no estimate of when the lanes would reopen.

Levee breaches in southeast Missouri forced hundreds of people from their homes and left many major roadways impassable. The Coon Island levee near Poplar Bluff, Missouri, broke around noon Thursday, and authorities were preparing to conduct water rescues if necessary.

President Bush on Wednesday night declared a major disaster in Missouri and ordered federal agencies to assist state and local authorities in flooded areas.  See what's going on in some hardhit areas »

The Black, Big and St. Francis rivers in Missouri were also expected to flood significantly. Minor flooding was predicted on the Mississippi and Missouri rivers.

In Eureka, Missouri, in St. Louis County, Patrick Butler was busy building a wall of sandbags wrapped in plastic he hoped would keep floodwaters out of a downtown building he rents to a screen-printing shop.

He said residents are nervous but well-acquainted with flooding in the low-lying Meramec River town.

"I think we'll have to just have a fishing tournament out in the street," he joked.

At least 16 deaths have been linked to the weather over the past few days, and at least two people were missing.  Watch flood survivor tell how her friends died »

Searchers in Texas recovered a body Thursday in waist-deep water that matched the description of a teenager who was washed down a drainage pipe, but the identity hadn't been confirmed. Two people were missing Thursday in Arkansas after their vehicles were swept away by rushing water on Tuesday.

Government forecasters said Thursday that the Midwest floods are just a taste of things to come. Record rainfall and melting snow packs will continue to cause rivers to overflow in large areas of the country, the National Weather Service said.


The greatest flooding danger includes much of the Mississippi River basin, the Ohio River basin, the lower Missouri River basin, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, most of New York, all of New England and portions of the West, including Colorado and Idaho.

"Overall moisture is unprecedented for this time of year over an area that extends over 1,000 miles," said Doug LeComte, a meteorologist at the government's Climate Prediction Center. E-mail to a friend

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/weather/03/21/severe.weather.ap/index.html?iref=topnews
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