Corps official praises Cape flood prevention

Army Corps of Engineers Maj. Gen. Michael C. Wehr met with Cape Girardeau officials Wednesday at the Meriwether Pumping Station. The gathering took on a different tone than his other meetings along his tour of Mississippi Valley sites.

"We're glad you came to see a place and not have to stand in water to see it," Cape Girardeau assistant public works director Stan Polivick said.

Polivick said the flooding story in Cape Girardeau is there is no story.

Although the Mississippi record still is slated to reach a record crest Sunday, flooding inside the city remains limited to isolated spots -- mostly in the Red Star area.

Polivick cites the city's partnership with the corps over the past 60 years, including $20 million worth of improvements to levee infrastructure and the Meriwether pumping station over the past 10 years.

City officials and Wehr said they should continue that partnership to complete the remaining $2.6 million worth of improvements -- a drainage and a rock beam to try to protect the concrete wall from erosion. Wehr said he still needs Congress to approve the funding.

"I do sense a real ownership here," Wehr said of Cape Girardeau. "Other places are not quite there."

Cape Girardeau Mayor Harry Rediger said the floodwall and Meriwether pump station have paid for themselves many times over.

"We're very fortunate, in our community, to be reaping the reward of the vision of past generations," Rediger said.

Wehr, head of corps' Mississippi Valley Region, said infrastructure improvements are needed along the length of the Mississippi, particularly gates, locks and dams.

"Nature is very fast, sometimes faster than we expect. Due to the vigilance of the people working, we're minimizing the risk to public safety," Wehr said. "The river is going to pass a flood from St. Louis to New Orleans. As a system, we rely upon the infrastructure of each of these places."

bkleine@semissourian.com

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