Flood-weary residents of Missouri, Arkansas and Ohio were on Saturday fighting to save their homes after heavy rain pushed rivers over their banks.
Residents of Valley Park, a town on the Meramec River, were hoping that the community’s new earthen levee, built to withstand a 100-year flood, would pass its first big test.
The surging Meramec was expected to crest on Saturday at a record 12m — 7,2m above flood stage and within 90cm of the levee’s lip.
In addition to this past week’s rain, a lingering storm blew more snow through parts of the Upper Midwest on Saturday, a day after it cancelled flights and some Good Friday services.
More than 30cm of snow fell on Friday in parts of southern Wisconsin and nearly as much blanketed south-eastern Minnesota.
Cleveland and Youngstown each had 18cm of snow and counting by Saturday, while Toledo had 10cm, according to the National Weather Service. The blast came two weeks after the Cleveland area saw 30cm of snow.
”Everyone is pretty tired of the snow but I think most people will agree these types of storms aren’t unusual in the spring,” National Weather Service meteorologist Steve Davis said.
At least 16 deaths have been linked to the weather over the past week, and two people are missing since their vehicles were swept away by rushing water in Arkansas.
Parts of the Midwest got 30cm of rain over a 36-hour period this week, causing widespread flash flooding. The worst flooding was along smaller rivers. The Mississippi, Missouri and Ohio rivers saw only minor flooding.
The Army Corps of Engineers expected the $49-million levee at Valley Park to hold. If it were to break or was overtopped, nearly one-third of town’s 6 500 residents could see their homes damaged or destroyed.
Authorities were taking no chances and set up a staging area of rescue trucks and stationed a boat in a school parking lot near the town.
”The centre of the flood fight now moves right here to the Meramec River and southern St Louis county and Jefferson county,” Missouri Lieutenant Governor Peter Kinder said late on Friday.
In southern Missouri, water poured through breaches in levees and forced authorities to evacuate towns west of Cape Girardeau. At least 200 homes and 13 businesses were evacuated in Cape Girardeau county, said emergency management director Dick Knaup.
At least 70 Missouri counties have reported flooding this week.
Rivers receded on Friday in Ohio, but several areas remained under flood warnings. About 60 state roads were closed or partly blocked by flooding; crews were trying to pump water off a major route into Columbus, according to the state highway patrol.
Residents of the tiny Arkansas community of Georgetown along the White River were urged to leave the area on Friday after forecasters said rising water would cut off their access and strand them well into next week. — Sapa-AP