Minor Flooding Expected this Week in Mo.
Minor flooding is expected along the Mississippi River in Missouri this week. In St. Louis, the river is slightly above flood stage at 30.5- feet, and expected to stay that way for the next four days.
There is a flood warning in effect towns from Quincy, Mo., down to Chester, Ill. until Sunday. National Weather Service meteorologist Butch Dye says the flooding is expected to remain minor, barring significant rainfall.
"Slow-moving heavy rain that moves through the basin, since much of the ground is saturated it won't take much to run off into the river and then that's going to aggravate the river problem," said Dye. " So barring no significant precipitation everything should remain nearly stable."
The Missouri River is near flood stage in St. Charles, but is expected to remain stable for the next few days.
The river is cresting 5-to-7 above flood stage further north in Iowa and Nebraska, and could crest as high as 10- to -11 feet above flood stage through Missouri.
Joplin Shelter to Close
The American Red Cross shelter set up at Missouri Southern State University after the May 22 tornado in Joplin will close on Tuesday, leaving some people wondering where they will live.
Signs went up Friday saying the shelter will close. Sixty-seven people were using the shelter on Friday.
Red Cross spokesman Steve Woods says the agency will open a smaller shelter, but a site has not yet been chosen. He says the college did not pressure the agency to close the shelter.
Ill. Gov. to Sign Education Reform Today
Ill. Gov. Pat Quinn is scheduled to sign a landmark education reform measure that will make it harder for teachers to go on strike and easier for educators to be fired.
Lawmakers approved the overhaul and sent it to the governor's desk last month. Quinn scheduled a bill signing at an elementary school in the Chicago suburb of Maywood today.
Under the legislation, teachers would face new restrictions on job-protecting tenure. Layoffs would be based on ability and credentials instead of seniority. And tenured teachers could be fired more easily. The bill also includes tougher standards for teacher strikes over contract disputes. It would require several additional steps, including earlier intervention by mediators and publicizing each side's last, best offer in contract negotiations, before a strike.
