MISSISSIPPI RIVER FLOODS IMPACTING CENTRAL STATES

April 18, 2001 — More rain through the weekend will prolong flooding in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa, and raise the height of expected water levels along the Mississippi River, according to NOAA's National Weather Service. (Click NOAA satellite image of Midwest flooding taken April 17, 2001 for larger view. Click here to see satellite image with state boundaries.)

NOAA's Climate Prediction Center is predicting heavy rain and flooding April 20-24 in much of western South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Strong to severe thunderstorms are forecast for April 21-24 through much of the central Plains and Ohio River Valley.

Governors in Minnesota, Wisconsin and Iowa have declared states of emergency for areas along the river. The Coast Guard declared the river unsafe Monday, halting boat and barge traffic on a 403-mile stretch from Minneapolis to Muscatinem, Iowa. Flood waters covered Amtrak and Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad tracks near Minneapolis, shutting down rail service between Chicago and St. Paul.

Officials and residents in La Crosse, Wis., breathed a slight sigh of relief Wednesday as the National Weather Service lowered the expected river crest from 17 feet to 16.5 feet. Flood stage in La Crosse is 12 feet. Still, that level represents the second-worst flood on record since 1900 in La Crosse, following the 17.9-foot crest reached in 1965. Colder weather caused some spots on the river to ice up, slowing the movement of the water.

The NWS expected the Mississippi to crest Wednesday at just over 23 feet in Minneapolis-St. Paul, just three feet below the record crest of 26 feet set in 1965 and a foot below the second-highest crest of 24.52 feet in 1969.

A forecast of showers and thunderstorms through the weekend in the Quad Cities area of Iowa and Illinois prompted NOAA forecasters in Davenport to up their crest projection to 21.5-22.5 feet, just inches shy of the record 22.63 crest experienced in 1993. The forecast calls for a chance of showers and thunderstorms Thursday night and a chance of thunderstorms Friday through Monday.

Listed at 22.9 feet Wednesday morning, the Mississippi is expected to crest Sunday at Dubuque, Iowa, at 25-26 feet. The record of 26.81 feet was set in 1965. The flood stage is 17 feet.

Downstream, Burlington, Iowa, is experiencing moderate flooding with the Mississippi at 17.4 feet, or 2.4 feet above flood stage. The river is expected to crest around April 26-27 in Burlington at 20-21 feet. The record crest there of 25.10 feet was set in 1993.

"We want to stress that the Mississippi will remain at high levels and above flood stage for weeks yet,"said Ken King, chief of hydrologic services at the NWS' Central Region Headquarters in Kansas City. "Especially if you look downstream, there will be no short resolution to the flood problems. As it stands right now, we're projecting flooding of some degree all the way past St. Louis."

"The Mississippi at St. Louis is expected to crest below flood stage, but the crest won't reach there until around May 2. The crests will be of long duration as they move down the river. For instance, right now we're looking at a crest of 24 feet at Quincy, Ill., on April 29 with flood stage there being 17 feet. We're forecasting a 24-foot crest at Hannibal, Mo., as well, with flood stage at 16 feet."

As flood levels continued to rise on the Mississippi River, the Red River of the North continues to fall slowly in the southern portions of the Red River Valley. The Red crested in Wahpeton, Fargo and Grand Forks last weekend. The crest continues moving toward the Canadian border.

Relevant Web Sites
Updated information on the flood and weather forecasts for the affected areas may be found on the following NOAA Web sites for the respective weather service forecast offices.

Davenport, Iowa, and vicinity

Minneapolis, Minn.

La Crosse, Wis.

St. Louis, Missouri

NOAA's National Weather Service Central Region

NOAA's Hydrologic Information Center

River Conditions from NOAA's Hydrologic Information Center — includes national graphic

NOAA's Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Services

NOAA's Flooding Page

NOAA's River Forecast Centers

Media Contacts:
Patrick Slattery, NOAA's National Weather Service Central Region, (816) 426-7621, ext. 621 or John Leslie, NOAA's National Weather Service, (301) 713-0622

 

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