16 Missouri counties approved for individual assistance

The Federal Emergency Management Agency declared 16 more Missouri counties eligible for individual disaster assistance today. Included in those counties were Cape Girardeau, Stoddard and Scott counties locally.

Those counties are added to the 19 that were declared eligible last week. The assistance means individuals and businesses can apply for their own disaster relief funds.

FEMA teams were out assessing damage to public property in Bollinger County today, and Gov. Matt Blunt announced that unemployment payments are available for people put out of work by heavy rains and flooding.

Rainfall in March broke the record for the wettest month on record at Cape Girardeau by almost an inch after strong storms brought 1.45 inches of rain to the city Monday evening. In all, 17.83 inches fell in March, surpassing the 16.89 inches recorded in May 1973 and far eclipsing the 11.89 inches recorded in March 1977, previously the wettest March on record.

August 2007 was the driest month ever recorded at Cape Girardeau, with 0.01 inches of rain.

Monday's rains created few flooding problems in the Southeast Missourian coverage area. A Bollinger County Sheriff's Department dispatcher reported some minor road flooding this morning.

The rains Monday stopped and reversed the gradual fall of the Mississippi River, sending it above flood stage again at Cape Girardeau by 1 a.m. The river was below the 32-foot flood stage measure for 20 hours.

At 11 a.m., the river reading was 32.8 feet and predicted to rise to 37 feet by Friday afternoon. The river crested most recently at 41.04 feet on March 24 following the record setting March 18-19 rainstorms.

At 35.5 feet, the Themis Street floodgate in the downtown floodwall must be closed.

Additional rain is in store for later in the week and the river prediction does not include the expected 3 to 4 inches of rain that could fall Thursday. The storm, with "potentially more significant heavy rainfall" is expected to arrive Thursday morning and be out of the area by Friday, according to the National Weather Service.

Residents and businesses in Bollinger County have already been declared eligible for help in recovering from the storms and flooding that hit in the middle of March. The latest round of assessments are designed to determine if enough public property was damaged to warrant federal reimbursement to the county for public expenses, said Jack Heesch, a FEMA spokesman.

The teams will tour damage in Perry County on Wednesday and review damage to public property in Cape Girardeau County on Thursday, Heesch said.

The disaster unemployment payments are aimed at people who are not otherwise eligible for unemployment compensation. Farmers, the self-employed and others who are denied regular unemployment benefits may now be eligible, Blunt said in a news release.

To determine eligibility, call 800-788-4002. Claims must be made by April 30.

For updates, check back at www.semissourian.com or read Wednesday's Southeast Missourian.