River near 44 feet; crest still expected Thursday

The Mississippi River at Cape Girardeau continues its ascent toward its highest level of the year.

The river has already surpassed its April crest of 41.12 feet on the Cape Girardeau gauge, and stood at 43.7 feet at 11 a.m. Wednesday. The National Weather Service still expects the river to crest at near 45 feet at Cape Girardeau late Thursday before it starts to fall. But the current forecast calls for the river to remain in "major" flood stage, more than 42 feet, into next week. Flood stage at Cape Girardeau is 32 feet.

At its current level, the river level is higher than all but eight recorded crests, and surpasses the 2008 flood crest by more than a foot.

Showers and storms are in the forecast for Cape Girardeau starting Wednesday night into Thursday.