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December 31, 2015

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Missouri, Illinois flooded as rivers rise

Rain-swollen rivers across Missouri were still rising yesterday, with widespread flooding forcing the evacuation of hundreds of people, closing part of a major interstate highway and threatening to wash out scores of structures.

At least 13 people have died in Missouri since the weekend, when days of downpours from a massive winter storm system triggered the worst flooding in two decades, Governor Jay Nixon said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 very clear that Missouri is in the midst of a very historic and dangerous flooding event,鈥 Nixon said.

Several major rivers and tributaries in Missouri and Illinois were poised to crest at record levels, the National Weather Service said. Some of the rivers would continue to rise until Saturday.

At the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers, about 32km north of St. Louis, residents of the towns West Alton and Arnold were told to evacuate on Tuesday. Flooding in the middle portion of the Mississippi River and its tributaries may reach the highest levels in recorded history, the forecasting site AccuWeather said.

The US Coast Guard closed a 8km stretch of the Mississippi River near St. Louis to all vessel traffic due to hazardous conditions. The National Weather Service forecast the Mississippi River at the Chester, Illinois, river gauge about 100km south of St. Louis would crest at 15.1 meters tomorrow 鈥 matching the 1993 record.

The floodwaters have forced the closure of roadways and highways, including a portion of Interstate 44, a major highway that runs from west Texas to St. Louis, the Missouri Department of Transportation said.

Nixon called out the National Guard to direct traffic away from closed roads in his state and urged people not to drive in flooded areas.


 

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