The Islands of Nebraska
It has received shockingly little national media coverage, but Nebraska, Iowa, and other parts of the Upper Mid-West are suffering some of the worst flooding seen in a generation, if not longer.
CNN:
This landlocked state shouldn’t have any islands. But the deadly flooding that has deluged parts of Nebraska could get worse before it gets better.
“This really is the most devastating flooding we’ve probably ever had in our state’s history, from the standpoint of how widespread it is,” Gov. Pete Ricketts said Monday.
More than 8 million people are under flood warnings in the Midwest and the Mississippi River Valley, said CNN meteorologist Dave Hennen.
“Eastern Nebraska remains the hardest hit area, with much of the southeast part of the state under flood warnings,” he said.
The flooding has already killed two people in Nebraska and one man in Iowa. Ricketts said at least one person remains missing in Nebraska.
Flood records have been shattered in 17 places, and more rivers will likely break cresting records this week, according to the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency. (A crest is the highest point of a flood wave.)
Now the big concern is flood water draining downstream, further deluging communities that can’t take any more water.
The conditions have necessitated the Nebraska National Guard to go into rescue mode:
The Nebraska National Guard has used helicopters and specialized vehicles to rescue Nebraskans stranded by flooding.
National Guard officials tell News Channel Nebraska that soldiers conducted aviation rescues to evacuate 34 people and seven dogs in the Columbus, Arlington and Genoa areas on Thursday and Friday.Authorities say seven Arlington firefighters were rescued from a river after they attempted to rescue a stranded family. The firefighters were suffering from hypothermia and were flown to the Fremont Airport where an ambulance was waiting.
National Guard officials say a rescue mission started Friday morning in Schuyler. Soldiers are attempting to rescue 14 people.Additionally, three people were rescued in Norfolk after National Guard soldiers used two Light Medium Tactical Vehicles to get to them. Soldiers used two LMTVs to rescue six people and two dogs in Genoa.
And there is more to come, as downstream flooding occurs and more weather could be on the way.
Further links to follow the story:
A national emergency. There’s karmic irony on Sasse and Grassley’s doorstep. Has the president spoke on the dire needs of the two states that voted for him?
I pray for the heartland. They are resilient, but human just the same. I don’t wish any ill will on any community dealing with challenges like these. And it will affect the farmers for sure.
The president should stop tweeting about his personal vanity and focus on the American people.Report
…are suffering some of the worst flooding seen in a generation, if not longer.
The records that are being broken along the Missouri River, at least, were all set during the 2011 flooding, so hardly generational. Those floods might not have been quite as high as these, but many areas were flooded from the beginning of June until early August that year. Here by the Rockies, we’re not on pace for the kind of snowfall that helped cause the 2011 floods, but unless April is a complete bust there will be above average runoff this spring. The Army Corps of Engineers was trying to drop the levels behind their Missouri River dams to get ready for the runoff, but this flooding has pretty much stopped that activity. Depending on the weather, there could be another round of flooding along the Missouri in a couple of months.
The home where my mom lives is quite near the confluence of the Platte and Missouri Rivers. The building is high enough that there are no flood worries, but my sister had to drive the long way around to get to an open bridge across the Platte when she went to visit this weekend.Report
It feels like today the media has finally taken notice. Wall-to-wall coverage over lunch.Report
Sonoma County has had similar kinds of flooding recently. It’s a big story here, but I presume not nationally.Report
People are likely to get tired of the flood stories by June. Massive snow pack in the Sierras; deeper than average snow pack on the east side of the Rockies; above average spring precipitation forecasts for the eastern two-thirds of the country.Report