DAVENPORT, IOWA (AP) – The rising Mississippi River in the United States will continue to test flood defences in southeast Iowa and northwest Illinois yesterday as it crests in the area.
The peak water levels this spring will likely rank in the top 10 of all time in many places, but the National Weather Service said river levels will generally remain well below past records.
That should help most towns along the river withstand the floodwaters though officials will be checking their floodwalls and sandbag barriers closely in the next few days. “Luckily we’ve had relatively dry weather over the last week or so and not expecting much in the way of rainfall as well,” National Weather Service meteorologist Tom Philip said. “So it’s coming through as forecast for the most part.”
The river peaked in the Dubuque area on Saturday at seven metres (m) – well below the 7.8m record – but officials there were grateful to have the floodwall the city built 50 years ago in place.
Without that floodwall, the city would be facing significant problems, said a civil engineer for the city of Dubuque Deron Muehring.
“The floodwaters would be up to six feet deep in the Port of Dubuque and more than seven feet deep in the south port,” Muehring told the Dubuque Telegraph-Herald.
The river is expected to crest at around 6.6m in the Quad-Cities area, where several neighbouring cities sit along the Iowa-Illinois line. Some roads and parks near the river are closed. The record at that spot is 6.9m. Once the river crests in an area, it may take up to two weeks for the floodwaters to fully recede.
