Rains keeping people out of homes

Strong Midwestern downpours may force residents to wait even longer to return to homes they evacuated because of fears of flooding, emergency management officials said Thursday.

Parts of northeast Missouri and west-central Illinois got as much as an inch of rainfall overnight Wednesday after powerful downpours the night before. Weather systems rolling across Iowa were expected to produce more rain Thursday and today, the National Weather Service said.

In Canton, Mo., the Mississippi River had fallen to 24.9 feet Thursday, but officials were monitoring weather reports in Iowa and said they could not yet lift a voluntary evacuation in parts of town.

However, the prediction for a crest of 43 feet Wednesday at Cape Girardeau remained unchanged. If the predicted crest is reached, it would be the highest river level since 2002.

On Thursday, water covered but did not close Highway 177 at the northern city limits of Cape Girardeau.

Cape Girardeau County emergency management director Richard Knaup said a river level of 44 feet would trigger action to build a temporary levee down Highway 74 near Dutchtown to keep the intersection of Highway 25 and Route A open. Otherwise, he said he expects few problems from the projected crest.

About 45 miles northwest of St. Louis, the community of Winfield called for a two-day break in sandbagging efforts, saying they would refresh their sand supply and restart Saturday.

Staff writer Rudi Keller contributed to this report.