MISSISSIPPI RIVER FLOODWATERS REACH RECORD 47.9 FEET

~Correction: FLOOD CRESTED AUG. 8, 1993, AT 48.49 FEET.

Sandbags lined Highway 74 in July 1993 as workers prepared to battle the record-breaking flood at Dutchtown.

The Great Flood of 1993 arrived not as a swift knockout punch but as a TKO by a methodical heavyweight of a river, wearing down its opponent round after round until the almost anticlimactic end.

In the end, the Mississippi River crested at an all-time record 47.9 feet at Cape Girardeau in early August, nearly 16 feet above flood stage. But the damage was registered along the way in the grim and defeated faces of families and volunteers who spent weeks and weeks surrounding their homes and communities with sandbags only to watch the river inexorably climb over and claim them.

Finally, there was Tom LeGrand, stoically paddling a boat to the family garage in the Red Star District hours after the river submarined the three carefully laid sandbag walls protecting their business and home.

The family and friends fought the river for 10 hours on the night of the crest. "We just couldn't keep it up," LeGrand said. "At 5:30 this morning we were just exhausted. We lost it."

Of course, the Flood of '93 didn't start out with a menacing look. By the beginning of June, the Mississippi River had been over flood stage at Cape Girardeau since April, eroding the levees and backing up the tributaries but causing minimal public concern because the numbers on the river gauge weren't spectacular.

The picture darkened as rains continued to pound the Upper Mississippi toward the end of June. When the Des Moines, Iowa, water system was inundated, the river served notice that this flood was looking for a place in the record book.

The bad news began moving from the Upper to the Lower Mississippi, with the flood even threatening St. Louis' highly protected downtown. President Clinton was among a parade of national officials who came, saw and sympathized.

Ste. Genevieve became a national symbol of the flood relief effort because of the danger the flood posed to the town's historic French Colonial buildings. Volunteers and the media came from all over the country to participate in and record the epic event.

With each new predicted crest, volunteers worked day and night to pile more sandbags upon the town's makeshift levee system. Events like the county fair and Jour De Fete were canceled.

Volunteers, the Missouri National Guard, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Coast Guard combined in heroic efforts to fend off the flood in Dutchtown and Commerce as well.

Meanwhile, houses in South Cape Girardeau and the Red Star District took on the appearance of islands. Diehards ran their pumps 24 hours a day for nearly two weeks to keep the water out of their homes.

The American Red Cross came to the rescue, setting up shelters along the Mississippi for those made homeless by the flooding, providing free hot meals for those who remained in their homes hoping to hold off the rising water.

The Salvation Army was also a major player in the relief effort, as were countless businesses, individuals and organizations who contributed money, materials or time to the cause.

Many flood victims moved in with family members or friends, or found their own accommodations on higher ground.

Southern Baptists from Tennessee bivouacked on the First Baptist Church parking lot, setting up a kitchen that at one point was serving 2,500 meals each day.

Some farmers in Southern Illinois lost their crops to the flooding, while others half-begged for rain.

Irony was not lost on the Flood of '93.

Eventually, the incredible volume of water and the extended length of length of time it was on the levees began to tell in July. Some began giving way, inundating Miller City, Ill., and areas near Perryville and a southern section of Ste. Genevieve.

Hundreds of people in the area were knocked out of work by the flooding, which claimed two large factories in Perry County. River traffic was nonexistent.

After the crest, the pressure eased. After weeks of fighting the flood, families began considering the onerous job of cleaning up the mess.

The receding water delivered a scene of murky destruction that brought on tears and the all-important decision of whether to stay or rebuild or move on.

The flood raised many questions, especially about whether attempts to control the river may have made the situation worse and how much should be spent in restoring the damaged levees.

Like the flood, answers would take their time.