An immediate evacuation order is being issued in far southwest Iowa for all Fremont County residents who live west of Interstate 29. Mike Crecelius, the county’s emergency management coordinator, issued the mandatory order late this morning after consulting with the county’s emergency management commission about the worsening situation on the Missouri River.
“Due to the deteriorating conditions along the levees over there and the rising river, we would like to make sure we get everybody out before we have a breach,” Crecelius says. “We do not currently have a breach, however, we’re anticipating some problems over there and we would like to get anyone that is still west of I-29 to evacuate as soon as possible.”
Crecelius is concerned about the rising flooding of the Missouri River as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is releasing still more water from Gavins Point Dam in South Dakota. The river at Nebraska City measured 27.8 feet this morning.
He says, “With these new releases, it would not surprise me to top 28, maybe even before the weekend gets here.” Continued heavy rains are forcing an increase in water flows from Gavins Point. The Corps of Engineers says flows will be boosted by tomorrow from 150- to 160,000 cubic feet — that’s nearly 1.2 million gallons per second.
By Mike Peterson, KMA, Shenandoah