RAINS KEEPING RIVER UP

Two weeks ago, it seemed as if the "The Flood of 1993" at Cape Girardeau would be history by this time.

The National Weather Service predicted the Mississippi River at Cape Girardeau would drop below flood stage (32 feet) by today, ending more than three consecutive months of flooding.

But Mother Nature and Old Man River had other ideas. Instead of falling, the Mississippi at Cape Girardeau rose again last week and crested for the ninth time this year, on Monday, at 36.6 feet. The crest was caused by heavy rains that fell last week along the Upper Mississippi and Missouri River watersheds.

The weather service now says the earliest the river at Cape Girardeau will drop below flood stage is the end of the month or in early October.

On Wednesday, the Mississippi at Cape Girardeau was at 36.1 feet. It was forecast to fall slowly the rest of the week -- down to 36 feet today, 35.9 on Friday and 35.6 feet on Saturday.

The weather service's weekly 30-day river forecast -- issued Wednesday -- said the Mississippi River at Cape Girardeau was expected to drop to 34.1 feet by Sept. 29, 25.9 feet by Oct. 6, 22.3 feet on Oct. 12, and 20.8 feet by Oct. 20.

However, forecasters cautioned that these figures would change if substantial rain occurs north of Cape Girardeau after Sept. 22. More heavy rains were forecast again in western sections of Missouri on Wednesday afternoon and evening, and in other parts of the state throughout the night, as a slow-moving cold front generated severe thunderstorms and heavy downpours of rain.

The latest river forecasts continue to frustrate commissioners of the East Cape Girardeau-Clear Creek Levee District, and officials with the Illinois Department of Transportation. Highway department crews continue their fight to keep Illinois Route 146 open to traffic between the Mississippi River bridge at Cape Girardeau and the Route 3 junction, four miles east of the bridge.

Seepwater from the ground and rainfall that's accumulated inside the levee district since mid-June forced the highway department to close the stretch of Route 3, between the Route 3-146 junction, and the levee, near Gale. Thousands of tons of rock were hauled in during August by the highway department in a futile effort to keep the water off the highway roadbed. Motorists must now use a lengthy detour to reach Thebes, Olive Branch and Cairo.

Because of the accumulation of surface water, at least 8,000-10,000 acres of farmland inside the East Cape Girardeau-Clear Creek Levee District, and a portion of the North Alexander County Levee District near McClure, now resembles a southeast Louisiana marsh and wetland.

With Route 3 closed to Gale, attention is focused on keeping Route 146 open to traffic between the bridge and the Route 3-146 East Cape "Y", as the surface water continues to creep closer toward the pavement.

Three sections of Route 146 have already been raised with rock. Two are located just east of East Cape Girardeau, and the other in East Cape Girardeau. In addition, water is now beginning to creep over the shoulder of Route 3 near the McClure rest area.

Levee district officials said drain pipes under the levee that would allow the surface water drain by gravity flow into the Mississippi River -- near Gale, and at other locations along the river south of the bridge -- cannot be opened until the river drops to at least 34.2 feet on the Cape Girardeau gauge.

Late Wednesday afternoon, East Cape Levee District Commissioner Bill Collier said the highway department is bringing in a 42-inch pump alongside the two 30-inch pumps put in place on the levee near Gale in August.

"They have also put the two 24-inch pumps on the Clear Creek Levee, east of McClure, back on line after the river came up over the weekend and we had to shut the drain gates there," he added. "I have to go through 8-10 inches of water on Bader Lane (at Route 146) to get to my house."

Bill Stout, operations engineer for the highway department's Carbondale district office, said plans are to bring the 42-inch pump in from the upstate area later this weekend. "We hope to get it on-line by the weekend or early next week," he said.

The devices pump out as much of the surface water as possible to prevent the water from getting any higher on the pavement of Route 146. Said Stout: "We're hoping we can pump out enough water to reopen the closed section of Route 3. Right now, we're holding our own down there. The water hasn't gotten any higher, but its still too high to reopen the highway."

Stout urged motorists who use Route 146 to drive carefully. "Keep in mind if you get off the pavement for any reason, there's no dry shoulder, just a lot of water ... and in some places, it's going to be several feet deep," he warned.

Collier and other levee district commissioners, and farmers who live inside the district, are worried their water problems may grow worse this fall and winter. "If we get the usual fall and early winter rains that seem to come at this time of the year, it may be next spring, if then, before we get all of the surface water out of here," he said. "And even when the river gets low enough to open the drains, it's going to take a while to drain 8,000 to 10,000 acres of water-covered land. I'm not sure we'll have enough time before the spring rains and flooding starts up again."

Collier said there was one bright spot to their water woes. He said: "At least our levee is still intact."