Crest forecast for Cape holds steady while others in Missouri are lowered

The Broadway floodgate in Cape Girardeau was closed Wednesday as city officials prepare for the year's third Mississippi River crest above 40 feet.

While flood crest predictions upstream and on tributaries were lowered, some by as much as 6 feet, the National Weather Service held fast to the forecast that the river will reach 42 feet in Cape Girardeau sometime Saturday morning.

The unusual late summer rise, caused by drenching rains from the remnants of hurricanes Ike and Gustav as well as a strong cold front that passed through the upper river valley last week, is unlikely to cause major disruptions. The high water mark should be well below the record crest of 48.59 feet set Aug. 8, 1993.

The river is rising much faster than usual, said Tim Gramling, director of public works for Cape Girardeau. The river level was 35.6 feet at 5 p.m. Wednesday, 3.6 feet above flood stage and almost 20 feet higher than Saturday morning's level.

"We had to do it today or it is going to be too late tomorrow or the next day," Gramling said. "I can't remember when we have closed Themis and Broadway the same day or less than a day apart."

Along with closing both downtown floodgates, a 42-foot crest will disrupt rail traffic through downtown Cape Girardeau and force the closing of North Main Street where it passes through the earthen levee.

The collection of storm debris will proceed normally, Gramling said. High water may force the closing of the city holding area where public works employees and city residents are dumping the tree limbs collected after Sunday's windstorm.

"It just adds to the way this year has been going," said Gramling, referring to the record-setting ice storm of Feb. 11, the record-setting rainstorm of March 18 and the repeated rises on the Mississippi River and tributaries throughout the year.

Further north, with crest predictions revised downward, several Missouri communities are breathing easier. Still, problems persisted Wednesday.

Flooding still a problem

The National Weather Service lowered predicted crests at St. Louis and other communities by 2 to 6 feet. Significant flooding was happening nevertheless along parts of the Missouri, Mississippi, the Meramec, the North, the Moreau and the Grand.

"We've got a lot of high water on a lot of rivers, and it's causing backup on the tributaries and the creeks," said Susie Stonner, spokeswoman for the Missouri State Emergency Management Agency.

The remnants of Hurricane Ike brought heavy rain and high winds to the state over the weekend, causing rivers to swell. Four deaths have been blamed on the weather -- three in the St. Louis area and one in Columbia. Flash floods also temporarily displaced an estimated 720 families in St. Louis County alone.

Residents of a neighborhood in St. Peters, Mo., are still cleaning up after the storm caused sewage to back up into their basements. And in Silex, Mo., residents were still drying out after the swift-rising Cuivre River caused damage to 90 homes.

The Meramec River has risen above flood stage three times since March. Forecasters now believe the Meramec will crest today at 36 feet in Arnold -- 6 feet below earlier projections but still 12 feet above flood stage. A sandbag wall protecting several homes was put up in March and never taken down. It is expected to hold back the water again.

The Missouri River was above flood stage but falling at Boonville, Jefferson City, Hermann and Washington. It was expected to crest about 8 feet above flood stage today at St. Charles.

Dozens of state highways remained closed Wednesday, including several sections of Highway 94 between Jefferson City and St. Charles.

The Mississippi was a few feet above flood stage from Hannibal south through Chester, Ill. The President Casino remained closed at St. Louis due to high water. The river is cresting today and Friday at most towns.

AmerenUE, originally dealing with more than 80,000 outages after the storms, had power restored to all but a few customers by Wednesday afternoon.

Stonner said state officials haven't yet begun to assess damage from the latest round of flooding. She said the latest flood could not be added to disaster declarations from the major flood that hit the Midwest earlier this summer.

It will be up to Gov. Matt Blunt to decide if another disaster declaration will be sought. Stonner said the governor will make that decision once damage assessments are complete.

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On the Net:

AmerenUE: http://ameren.com.

National Weather Service hydrology: http://www.weather.gov/ahps.

Missouri State Emergency Management Agency: http://sema.dps.mo.gov/semapage.htm