River crest predicted for Sunday at 44.5 feet

With levees along creeks running over and toppling in isolated spots from flash flooding, concern will now focus on the Mississippi River with a predicted surge towards a Sunday crest of 44.5 feet.

At 11:30 a.m., the river level was 35.2 feet.

At 42.5 feet, Cape Girardeau will be forced to pump its sewage untreated into the river from the plant at 429 Cooper St., chief operator Jim Baylor said.

The Main Street Levee District will close the Broadway floodgate, probably about noon on Thursday, said Andy Juden, president of the district.

And the North Main Street Levee District will close the floodgate on North Main Street near the Red Star neighborhood sometime before the river reaches 42 feet, said Chris Wybert, fleet supervisor for AmerenUE's Southeast Missouri district.

If reached, the 44.5-foot reading on the Cape Girardeau gauge would be among the highest river levels ever reached here. In 1993, the river crested at 48 feet. Other record levels include 46.7 set in 1995 and 45.7 set in 2002.

"We will have to bypass, we won't be able to treat it," Baylor said of the city's sewage. "If it goes up to 44.5 feet, there is so much river water coming in, with low manholes in Red Star and down along Sprigg Street. Thank goodness it only happens now and then."

As the river passes 42.5 feet, employees of the sewage plant can only reach their jobs by boat, Baylor said. The plant itself is protected to 52 feet by an earthen and concrete levee, he said.

AmerenUE workers will probably assemble and install the gate sometime Thursday as a precautionary measure, Wybert said. The job takes eight to 10 hours, he said.

"We don't want to see water running down Main Street just because we waited a day," he said.

The Sloan Creek crossing of the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad must be closed before the river reaches 37.5 feet, officials said.

The crest prediction from the National Weather Service Lower Missouri River Forecast Center is up 4.5 feet from Tuesday's prediction. Downstream from Cape Girardeau, the crest is expected to range from 7.5 feet to 10.5 feet above floodstage to Caruthersville, Mo. The Ohio River stood at 46.7 feet at Cairo, Ill., and is anticipated to rise an addition 8.3 feet to 55 feet by Tuesday.

Crest predictions are subject to constant revision and generally are revised downward in the days immediately after a big storm. Juden said he intends to speak with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers office in St. Louis, but at this time thinks 44.5 feet is a reasonable number.

"Every inch of water above 28 feet is affecting somebody," he said. "There is farm ground under water and it gets progressively worse as it goes up."