Tuesday, May 8, 2007

Flooding in US Midwest

Breitbart.com: "KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - Heavy rain from an already deadly storm system sent the Missouri River and other Midwest waterways over their banks Tuesday, forcing thousands of people to evacuate and bringing warnings that the region could see flooding close to the devastation of 1993.

Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt declared a state of emergency and mobilized National Guard troops to help. About 60 percent of Mosby, 20 miles northeast of Kansas City, was covered by water 2 to 4 feet deep from the overflowing Fishing River, said D.C. Rogers, Clay County director of emergency services. He said the town's 242 residents began evacuating Monday morning. By evening, only one route into the community remained open.

Mosby's flooding could have been worse, but authorities managed to plug a damaged dam with sandbags, Rogers said. The private earthen dam holds back a 20-acre lake. If that dam were breached, its water would flow into Clear Creek, which runs into the Fishing River and through Mosby.

"Last word I got is it's holding," Rogers said. "Hopefully, the waters will recede, and that guy can fix his dam." "It hasn't gotten this much water since 1993," he said.

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