Another lock and dam opened today on the Mississippi River. Lock and Dam Eleven at Dubuque opens the shipping of cargo north to St Paul, the northernmost end of the shipping routes. But Coast Guard Commander Eric Washburn says it’s not the end of restrictions caused by Mississippi flooding.He says there’s still high water, and authorities will take another look Thursday from Davenport north. But the crest won’t hit Quincy till Friday or Saturday. Washburn says where the water’s still high, it’s not safe to re-open the lock-and-dam systems, for a couple of reasons… submerged things hard to see can be dangerous, and when water’s high, the locks won’t work. Locks twelve through 25 are still closed because of flooding on the river, and up to five inches of rain over the weekend in Iowa didn’t help things much. Washburn explains it’s not just the safety of boats keeping some of the waypoints closed,in towns along the river, water’s still right at the top of the levees and sandbags. Any boat wake will spill water over, into the homes and streets. The Army Corps of Engineers will re-open the rest of the locks following passage of the river’s crest in the next few days or weeks.
