EPA: Low level of E. coli in Missouri floodway

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- The Environmental Protection Agency said tests on receding floodwaters in Southeast Missouri's Birds Point-New Madrid Floodway show low levels of E. coli bacteria.

The EPA's regional office in Kansas City, Kan., said Thursday that sampling taken Tuesday showed E. coli bacteria levels well below Missouri's official standard for swimming. The testing was done to determine if there were any threats for emergency responders who could come into contact with the floodwaters.

The 130,000-acre floodway was inundated May 2 when the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers breached the levee to reduce the threat of flooding from the Mississippi and Ohio rivers.