Here comes another Mississippi River flood

Surprise! Thanks to our ongoing round of heavy rain and thunderstorms, the Mississippi River at Cape Girardeau is expected to jump to a stage of 39 feet next week.

This would put it 7 feet above official flood stage, and only 3 feet shy of "Major Flood" stage. Although the current forecast calls for the river to quickly drop afterward, this isn't a sure thing since more rain (or a wintry mix?) is possible late next week.

The 6-10 Day Outlook is leaning toward above-average precipitation:

To make matters worse, the Ohio River is also flooding. The river at Olmsted Lock and Dam (upstream from Cairo, Illinois) is projected to rise to 44.8 feet, putting it only 2.2 feet below major flood stage there.

This is not a good way to start the year, and it doesn't bode well for the spring flooding season.