Sunny skies are bringing welcome drying to areas of the state that’ve seen high water in the last couple of days. Iowa Department of Transportation spokesperson, Dena Gray-Fisher says the floodwaters have receded enough that only two state highways are closed. The southbound lanes of Iowa 14 south of Marshalltown are closed and are expected to be opened later today, and U.S. 169 north of Adel is closed.
Gray-Fisher says some cities, like Des Moines, have streets that will be closed for several days, but she says the state has been fortunate that those roadways have been closed for just a short time. Gray-Fisher urges everyone to obey the signs and not go around barricades when city, county and state roads are closed.
Gray-Fisher says the barricades are there to protect people from unsafe conditions. She says some people have gone around the barricades and trying to get into the water and "they’re taking a serious risk for themselves and for others if they become stranded."
The City of Ames was in the midst of the area that saw heavy rainfall and runoff. City spokesperson Susan Gwiasda says the water covered many roadways. She says there were several streets that were closed, including a couple of the main streets that are always a problem. Gwiasda says it was amazing to see the result of the rains.
Gwiasda says they had an employee go up in an airplane to get some aerial pictures for historical data so they know the impact of the water when it reaches certain crest numbers. Gwiasda says, "The results are pretty startling. There was a lot of water here yesterday." She says the water is starting to recede.
Gwiasda says the dry weather will let them move on to the next stage. She says cleanup is the next stage as there’s a lot of muck and debris, and stumps from the floodwaters. The National Weather Service has a flood warning out for small streams in Boone, Dallas and Story County through nine o’clock tonight.