Flood claims one, strands more

and Heather Kronmueller ~ Southeast Missourian

Heavy rains swamped the area late Sunday and early Monday, closing schools and countless roads for hours and flooding homes and businesses from Marble Hill to Millersville, Mo. The storm was blamed in the death of a Marble Hill man.

Michael Davis, 21, drowned after the pickup truck he was driving skidded across water-covered Highway 34 about three miles west of Marble Hill at 4 a.m. Monday, Bollinger County Coroner Charles Hutchings said.

"He hydroplaned off into a ravine totally full of water," said Hutchings. Davis managed to climb out of his pickup truck, but logs and other debris apparently kept him submerged, Hutchings said.

Marble Hill police chief Gary Shrum said more than 5 inches of rain fell in Marble Hill overnight Sunday and into the early hours on Monday, a figure echoed by rain gauge watchers in Cape Girardeau County. The deluge turned Crooked Creek into a raging river, flooding several homes and about 15 businesses in Marble Hill, police said.

The coroner's business, Hutchings Funeral Home in Marble Hill, was flooded with about 8 inches of water on the main level. But Hutchings said he had time to move furniture upstairs before the flooding thanks to an early warning from the county's emergency operations director.

Marble Hill City Hall, including the police station, was flooded, forcing city staff to set up makeshift offices in the Marble Hill First Baptist Church Community Center.

"We have taken all the documents out of city hall, filing cabinets, computer equipment," said Chuck Kernan, the city's director of public works.

"We probably had six inches of water or seven in the main part of City Hall. It got about knee-deep in the meeting room," Kernan said.

Floodwaters receded later in the day.

David Hitt, emergency management director for Cape Girardeau County, said the flooded Mississippi River, which backed up creeks, and recent rains that saturated the ground contributed to the flooding.

The Mississippi River stood at 41.9 feet on the river gauge at Cape Girardeau on Monday. The National Weather Service forecasts that the river will crest at 46 feet on Sunday, 14 feet above flood stage.

Even though the crest date is days away, the flood has already stranded residents in Cape Girardeau County.

One woman was rescued dramatically when an ambulance couldn't reach her home off water-covered County Road 379 north of Crump. Neighbors took her by boat to a nearby house and called 911 from there. A helicopter from Southeast Missouri Hospital found her and took her to safety.

Schools closed

Schools in Jackson, Mo., and some in Bollinger County were closed Monday because floodwaters made getting to school impossible. The Woodland school complex near Marble Hill was flooded.

Jackson superintendent Ron Anderson said the decision to call off school was purely for the safety of the district's students.

"We were very concerned about the roads," Anderson said. "We're not sure what's under there. Some bridges could be out, and it's just too risky to attempt."

Anderson said the students won't have to make up the day at the end of the semester, which is May 24, because there was an extra day built into the calendar.

All schools in Bollinger County except in the Meadow Heights School District were closed due to flooding.

"We're going to try to have school all week," said Meadow Heights superintendent Duane Schindler. "It's just the way Mother Nature works. Our bus drivers are going to call the students and arrange pickup points. We'll make do."

Red Star troubles

In the Red Star region of Cape Girardeau, between Big Bend Road and Main Street, floodwaters surrounded homes Monday, neon orange "road closed" signs dotted the landscape and a lone white goose, who seemed to have lost her nest to the flood, wandered through the streets honking.

Donna Heck's home at the corner of Second and Main streets had water on the south and east sides Sunday afternoon. By Monday it surrounded her entire property.

Just across from what was once Heck's back yard, Joseph Cullen, a member of the Disabled Veterans Chapter 16, helped pump water from behind the New Life Fellowship Church, over a levee and into the newly formed lake.

About a foot of water collected behind the small church at the corner of Second Street and Big Bend Road, but Cullen says it's a small amount of water compared to what would have been if the levee weren't there.

"We had this levee put in two years ago so it would do just what it is doing right now -- keeping most of the water out," he said. "All of this water is just rain water that got trapped."

The Disabled Veterans own the building and rent it out to the church. Cullen said there was some water damage to carpet inside the church, but for the most part the building was not damaged.

Other parts of the city saw flooding problems, too. Torrential rain turned Water Street in downtown Cape Girardeau into a river around 11:30 p.m. Sunday, flooding parked cars and even getting into Port Cape Girardeau restaurant.

The flooding occurred even though the downtown floodgates were closed. "It rained so hard the pumps couldn't keep up," said bartender Jason Cooper.

The Main Street Levee District has pumps that are used to keep water from backing up into the city's sewer system once the river reaches flood stage. But the deluge on top of the river flooding was too much for the pumps to handle.

"You could have called it River Street," Cooper said.

Burfordville an island

Heavy rains in Cape Girardeau County turned the normally placid Whitewater River into a churning sea of muddy water, flooding Highway 72 west of Millersville and Highway 34 at Burfordville.

Division III Associate Circuit Judge Gary Kamp had to cancel morning court in Jackson because flooding at Burfordville prevented him from driving into work from his home near Gravel Hill, Mo.

"I got up to the top of a little hill, and I could see nothing but water going across Highway 34," said Kamp. "I never saw it come up that quick."

The rising river flooded the Old Mill Store, which houses the Burfordville post office and an antique shop. As of mid-morning Monday, about 2 feet of water stood in the building.

But postmaster David Enderle said the mail was up high enough that it didn't get wet. "A lot of people won't get mail today," he said.

Next door, water flooded the basement of Mardell Amelunke's home. She owns the antique shop. She said the floodwaters rose quickly, but by mid-morning, they had started to recede.

"I can't do much of anything until it goes down," she said.

The flooding isolated about nine homes on the east side of the creek in the tiny town and also poured into the historic Bollinger Mill.

About 6 inches of muddy water invaded Chris Wendel's home. He and his wife moved out many of their belongings early Monday morning. "We got pretty much everything out that was worth saving," he said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 123

hkronmueller@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 128

[ Browse our gallery of photos of the flooding ]