By Tom Weber, KWMU / AP
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/kwmu/local-kwmu-586822.mp3
St. Louis, MO – Flood warnings continue for cities and towns along the Missouri River.
The surge of water created by last week's storms in the Plains is expected to reach and flood towns like Jefferson City and Hermann Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the river showed both its fury and its mercy in the western part of the state.
Predictions of how high the river will get were actually downgraded a little bit Tuesday, but that didn't stop officials from calling this a major flood.
Five levees burst along the Missouri River town of Big Lake on Tuesday, as thousands in the region fled their homes amid warnings that the flooding could approach the devastation of 1993.
The levees broke Monday south of Big Lake, along with four smaller levees along the Tarkio River and the Tarkio Creek, and the rush of river water immersed the town on Tuesday, said Mark Sitherwood, presiding commissioner of Holt County. Many of the buildings in town had several feet of water inside, said Holt County Clerk Kathy Kunkel.
"The town is a loss. At this time, we don't know, but it looks like that's what's going to happen," Sitherwood said.
No injuries were reported. Most Big Lake residents evacuated Monday but a handful had to be rescued by boat Tuesday, Sitherwood said.
Big Lake is about 95 miles northwest of Kansas City and has a permanent population of 150 and another 150 summer residents. Nearby, the communities of Craig and Fortescue also were threatened, Sitherwood said.
Levee breaches were also reported east of Kansas City near the towns of Levasy and Norborne. Voluntary evacuations are taking place in Levasy.
Still, there was some good news Tuesday. St. Joseph was spared a flood after the river there crested at below-predicted levels.
In Hermann, police chief Frank Tenet the new forecasts Tuesday brought a 'foot of good news.'
But even with the good news, he says the city's park will still be under water this weekend and a few of businesses are still on edge.
"Most of the folks around here aren't nearly as concerned with this as they are with the prospect of a flash flood, which happens fairly regularly around here," Tenet said. "If we have, say Sunday night, terrible rain storms, it will definitely cause considerably more problems."
The new forecast also suggests riverfront businesses in St. Charles City will be spared, but it's too close to say for sure.
In the wine country town of New Haven, in Franklin County, city administrator Steve Roth says trucks of sand were being delivered just in case.
"Most of the historic downtown is right behind that levy, so we definitely maintain it, pay a lot of attention and take care of it," Roth said. "But we are obviously very vulnerable to anything that gets over it or through it."
New Haven's levee was one of the few that did not break in 1993 or 1995, and forecasts suggest it will still be a good five feet from being topped this week.
In Agency, a town of about 600 surrounded on three sides by the Platte River, most had already evacuated. The town was hit hard in 1993 in one of the most costly and devastating floods in U.S. history. That flood claimed 48 lives in the Midwest and caused $18 billion in damage.
By midday Tuesday, a few homes were partially submerged, as were nearby roads and a cemetery.
"It isn't as bad as 1993," said Pauline Gibson, 71. "But it's working on it. We don't want it like '93, but they say more rain is coming and that's not good."
Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt declared a state of emergency and mobilized National Guard troops to help. At least 19 Kansas counties declared local disaster emergencies.
"Once we've dealt with the entire flood across the state, we'll begin to evaluate the damage and find out what kind of assistance might be available," Blunt said Tuesday.
River towns across much of Missouri were evacuating low-lying areas Tuesday or seeking help filling and stacking sandbags.
"We're scrambling around here," said Steve Mellis, who was volunteering near the central Missouri town of Easley as residents moved boats and equipment to higher ground.
Two-thirds of the town of Mosby, 20 miles northeast of Kansas City, was already under 2 to 4 feet of water 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.
Evacuations were voluntary in several western Missouri counties, but a mandatory evacuation was imposed in Parkville, just across the Missouri River from Kansas City, said Jessica Robinson, a spokeswoman for the governor.
Parts of Missouri, Iowa and Kansas received 4 to 8 inches of rain in a 24-hour period, the National Weather Service said.
Since the 1993 floods in the Mississippi and Missouri river basins, only two or three other flooding episodes have been comparable to what forecasters are predicting in the next several days, weather service meteorologist Andy Bailey said.
The 1993 flood was caused by melting snow combined with heavy rain over two months. After that, state buyouts of property on flood plains left fewer residences in danger of future floods.
"But make no mistake," Bailey added, "this is a major flood."
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