ST. LOUIS (AP) – The Mississippi River continued its slow rise Tuesday at several Missouri and Illinois towns, but there was reason for optimism after overnight rainfall wasn’t as bad as predicted.
Spurred by heavy recent rains to the north, the Mississippi rose sharply over the past two weeks, reaching major flood levels from central Iowa south to near St. Louis. Storms brought strong winds, hail and still more rain to northern Missouri and western Illinois Monday night and Tuesday morning.
Rainfall amounts were generally less than 2 inches. National Weather Service meteorologist Jayson Gosselin said that means the river level should not go up much, if at all. The forecast also is promising.
“We’re not anticipating any rain over the basin in the next two or three days, so that’s good. That’ll help,” Gosselin said.
The river has crested from Iowa through northeast Missouri. It’s still rising in places such as Clarksville, Missouri, and Grafton, Illinois, small tourist towns north of St. Louis. Sandbag walls are up in Clarksville, and Mayor Jo Anne Smiley said efforts are now focused on fixing a few places where water is seeping through. Prisoners, both men and women, have been working with townspeople and other volunteers.