Dread in the Water

Much of U.S. Midwest flooded, weather service warns of more to come

Posted at 10:55 AM on 20 Mar 2008

Heavy rains in the U.S. Midwest since Monday have flooded large parts of the region, with some areas enduring over a foot of rain. Officials warned of more flooding to come as communities downriver and downstream brace themselves for hugely increased flows. Thousands of people have been evacuated, including more than 500 homes in Missouri. Missouri's governor asked for federal assistance in 70 counties and the city of St. Louis. Hundreds of sections of roads in the area, including part of Interstate 70, have been closed due to flooding. In the midst of the deluge, some residents have again questioned the wisdom of expanding development on floodplains. An official from the already-flooded town of Pacific, Mo., said, "We have had floods here before, but one of the things we're concerned about is that there's been a lot more development in the floodplain, and we just don't know how that's going to be affected." The National Weather Service has issued flood warnings for large swaths of the Midwest and Northeast.

sources:  The Washington Post, Associated Press, Associated Press, The New York Times
see also, in Grist:  Fifteen years after the Great Flood of 1993, floodplain development is booming