Birds Point breach unlikely, but plans put in place just in case

Editor's note: This story has been edited to correct a river level.

CHARLESTON, Mo. -- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says it will begin preliminary preparations to breach the Birds Point levee near the confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers, but officials say they do not expect it will be necessary.

The levee was intentionally breached with explosives in 2011, a flood-action plan initiated for the first time since 1937. It intentionally flooded more than 130,000 acres of farmland and destroyed a small community that resided in the floodway. The floodway, activated to relieve pressure to flooded and more densely populated areas upstream on the Mississippi River, is activated when the river gauge at Cairo, Illinois, reaches 60.5 feet. The crest forecast for Cairo is 59 feet on Monday, as of 2 p.m. Wednesday.

The Ohio River at Cairo, Illinois (NOAA)

Barges may be loaded with explosives at Memphis, Tennessee, just in case they are needed, officials said Wednesday while on a tour of the levee system.

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