SCHOOLS WATCHING THE RIVER; EDUCATORS STUDY BUS ROUTE PROBLEMS

Emergency services officials and volunteer flood workers aren't the only ones keeping an eye on the Mississippi River gauge at Cape Girardeau right now.

On both sides of the Mississippi, school administrators have one eye on the calendar and the other on the river gauge. They hope the river will drop low enough so school buses can travel over roads and highways that are now submerged.

Some districts have decided to de~lay opening school until after Labor Day, hoping that the threat to water-logged levees will have subsided and the water is off roads.

On Friday, the National Weather Service said the Mississippi River at Cape Girardeau would crest again, this time at 46.5 feet, on Tuesday. But on Saturday, the new crest was removed from the forecast, and the weather service said the river at Cape Girardeau will continue to fall from 44.9 feet on Saturday to an expected level of 43.8 feet on Tuesday.

The school district most impacted by the flood in the Cape Girardeau area appears to be Shawnee School District 84 at McClure, Wolf Lake, and Grand Tower. Other school districts affected to a lesser degree by the high water are Egyptian School District at Tamms, Ill., and Nell Holcomb, Delta, Jackson and Cape Girardeau school districts, all located on the west side of the Mississippi.

Besides an increasing accumulation of seepwater and rainwater that's covered many roads in the Shawnee School District, there is still a threat that one of the Big Five agricultural levees that surround much of the Shawnee district could fail, flooding thousands of acres of farmland.

The Big Five levee system extends along the Mississippi River and Clear Creek-Sexton Creek from the Big Muddy River south to Gale, Ill.

In response to that threat, the Shawnee school board decided Thursday to delay the opening of school until Sept. 7. It had been scheduled to start Aug. 20. And Assistant Superintendent John Phillippe says the Sept. 7 date will be changed if it's still not safe for students and faculty.

"In no case will any of our schools reopen until we're assured by the Corps of Engineers and state emergency services officials that it is safe to do so," he said Saturday.

"If that means we have to delay opening of school past Sept. 7, we will do it. If we're going to err, it's going to be on the side of safety."

Shawnee District has elementary schools at Grand Tower and McClure and the junior/senior high school complex is located near Wolf Lake. All of the schools are located in the flood plain, as are most of the families in the school district, which serves students in Union, Jackson and Alexander counties.

The district's McClure grade school is located a short distance from where the Mississippi River levee broke in 1943. The rushing floodwater destroyed many homes and buildings in McClure.

All of the district's seven bus routes are in the flood plain, except for a portion of one route that runs east on the Grapevine Trail Road, just past the Bean Ridge road, east of McClure.

Many of the students' families live in areas that have either had mandatory evacuations, such as at Grand Tower, or voluntary evacuation, such as at McClure.

As many as 500 of the district's 560 students may have moved out of the district this summer because of the threat of a levee failure. But Phillippe expects most of those families will return to their homes as the water goes down and there is no longer a threat to the levee system.

After the threat to the levees has subsided and schools can reopen, there is still the problem of roads and highways covered by seepwater. But Phillippe says changes were made last spring in the school bus routes to compensate for water over the roads.

"When school does reopen in September, we'll start out with the same bus routes we were running at the end of the school year," he said. "The only difference now is there is just more water on some of the roads than there was in early June. Families that were affected by the water before school ended in June are already aware of the problem and have made plans to get their children to the bus each day."

Farther south, Egyptian School District officials say flooded roads in their district are confined to a small area between Gale and Thebes, and in the Olive Branch-Miller City area, around Horseshoe Lake. Bus routes have been changed in those areas. The district runs 10 bus routes each school day.

Raymond McCrite, transportation coordinator for the Egyptian School District, said only about 20-25 of the district's 750 students are affected by the flooding in Alexander County.

On the Missouri side, the Nell Holcomb School District, north of Cape Girardeau, is most affected by the floodwaters from the Mississippi River. School there is scheduled to open Aug. 25.

Superintendent David Fuemmeler said Highway 177 is the critical link in the district's student transportation network. The highway is still covered by over a foot of water at its intersection with East Cape Rock Drive, near Twin Trees Park.

"Highway 177 is our main artery. We use it to get our school buses to Cape Rock Village, and to take our high school students to Cape Central in Cape Girardeau," said Fuemmeler. "If the water isn't off the highway by the time school opens, we'll have to detour our buses over the Upper Bend Road, between Egypt Mills and North Cape Rock Drive."

Fuemmeler said the magic number for him is 41.5 feet on the Mississippi River gauge at Cape.

"At that level, the water is off Highway 177, and that's our biggest concern right now. We'll still have water over the Lower Bend Road, and in the Neely's Landing area, but we can work around that."

Fuemmeler said if Highway 177 is still closed when school begins next week, he may run a temporary bus route from the school south to the Rolling Hills Subdivision, along Highway 177, to pick up students that would normally be picked up by the bus coming from Cape Rock Village.

In southwest Cape Girardeau County, the Delta School District is also feeling the impact of the record flood of 1993. Because of construction now under way, school there will not begin until Sept. 7. By that time, school officials hope the backed-up Diversion Channel will have receded enough so school buses can get into isolated areas in the Allenville-Dutchtown area.

In Cape Girardeau, Jim Englehart, who coordinates student transportation for the Cape Girardeau School District, says the flooding may require two bus routes to be altered if the water hasn't receded enough when school opens.

"Our greatest concern is Highway 74, between Cape and Dutchtown, where the water is still over the road," said Englehart. "That bus goes west on Highway 74 to Dutchtown where it turns around and comes back to the Pecan Grove Road. From there, it goes north to make pickups in the old Campster School District. If the water is still over the highway next week, we'll have to bring the bus in from the north."

Englehart said some changes may also be made in the bus route in the Red Star area if the water is still over the streets in that area. He said less than 30 students in the school district are affected by the high water.

Because of the flooding, many families have been forced to move into other school districts, or into other areas within a school district, such as Cape Girardeau. Englehart said arrangements will be made to make sure students whose families have been forced to move from Red Star, or other flooded areas, can still attend their neighborhood school.

"If a student attends Washington School, but is living in another area of town, we'll make sure the student gets to Washington School each day," he explained.

Jackson School Superintendent Wayne Maupin said the only area of that district affected by flooding is in the Neely's Landing area, and the impact is minimal. "We have picked up a few students who have relocated from other school districts. I don't know if it's going to be a temporary thing, or if they intend to remain in the district permanently," he said.

Phillippe said parents in the Shawnee School District who have had to move out of their homes should be patient and wait until school opens before they decide to enroll their children in another district. "We will have a full academic year," he said. "And all of our fall athletic events will be played, including junior and senior high school activities. Those teams will soon begin voluntary practice for those students who can make it. We intend to follow our entire fall athletic schedule of games."

Phillippe said parents who have questions about the reopening of school should contact the temporary school district office at 1-833-5709 or 1-833-5307.