Flash flooding early today has forced road closures, early school dismissals and headaches for home owners across the state. In Benton County, five inches of rain flooded several homes along the Cedar River near Vinton. Jennifer Pickar with the Red Cross in Cedar Rapids says some people will be staying at a shelter set up at the Iowa Braille and Sight Saving School. "I don’t know the number of (flooded) homes exactly, but we know there are at least 20 people that will need shelter overnight," Pickar said. Red Cross volunteers are checking to see if others in the eastern Iowa town need help.
To the north, flooding in southern Black Hawk County forced a school district to dismiss students early. Union schools in La Porte City closed at 11 a-m today. State transportation officials say flooding has closed several major highways in Iowa including Highway 63 at Traer, Highway 330 south of Marshalltown, Highway 13 in Manchester and Highway 69 near Ames. Flood Warnings remain in effect for roughly two dozen counties in northern, central and eastern Iowa.