Big Sioux River Floods Causing Roads To Close
(Elk Point) — Union County, South Dakota officials have announced the Jefferson bridge that crosses the Big Sioux River and connects Union County, South Dakota with Plymouth County, Iowa is under water, causing the road to
be closed. Dan Rolfes serves as the city administrator for Akron. He says the Big Sioux River actually crested Wednesday evening near Akron. Rolfes offers an update as to the river’s current situation.
Rolfes says the levees around Akron have been holding the waters away from entering the town of Akron. At last report, the Floyd River at Le Mars is rising, but at a slower pace than yesterday. Le Mars Fire Chief Dave Schipper says the river is at 18.86 feet with flood stage set at 20 feet.
Congressman King Acknowledges Hornick Flood Recovery Efforts
(Le Mars) — One community that has been trying to recover from the floods that struck in March is the Woodbury County town of Hornick. Congressman Steve King was in Hornick earlier this week to recognize those individuals that assisted with the flood recovery efforts.
King specifically highlighted the efforts of Hornick mayor, Scott Mitchell.
The Republican Congressman says nearly half the town attended the ceremonies, and he says the townspeople of Hornick have pride in their community, and in the way they took action to recover from the recent flooding.
King says the people of Hornick are a determined group that like to get things done, and are getting things done.
(Flood photos contributed.)
King Predicts Disaster Relief Bill Will Pass U-S House
(Le Mars) — The U-S House of Representatives is scheduled to vote on the disaster relief package bill that cleared the Senate last week. According to Iowa Republican Congressman Steve King, the vote on the $19.1 billion dollar relief package may appear on the agenda as early as next Tuesday. King says
Speaker Pelosi had asked for an unanimous consent to pass the bill prior to dismissing for the Memorial Day Holiday. However, Texas Congressman Chip Roy objected to the procedure.
King says he is confident the bill will pass the House of Representatives. He says disaster relief bill entails more than just the flood damaged area of the Midwest.
The Republican Congressman offers three reasons why he is confident the bill will pass through the U-S House.
4 Year Old Boy Recovering After Shooting Himself
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Police in Des Moines say a 4-year-old boy is recovering from a gunshot wound after picking up a gun he found inside his parents’ vehicle.
Television station KCCI reports that the shooting happened Wednesday afternoon on the southeast end of the city.
Sgt. Paul Parizek says the child was unattended in the vehicle when he found the handgun and began playing with it. The gun fired, hitting the child in the shoulder.
Police say the boy is in stable condition and is expected to recover.
Investigators say the gun belongs to the child’s parents.
Police have not said whether charges will be filed.
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Davenport To Build Larger Levy To Protect City From Future Flooding
DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) – Officials in the eastern Iowa city of Davenport say the city is building a bigger flood barrier in the wake of a breach in April that sent floodwaters rushing into downtown streets.
Davenport City Administrator Corri Spiegel tells the Quad-City Times that the city will build larger flood walls when there is a high probability the river cresting above 21 feet. Days after the last temporary barrier broke on April 30, the river hit a historic crest of 22.7 feet.
Davenport’s downtown sits on the banks of the Mississippi River, with no permanent floodwall. Instead, the city has an expanse of riverfront green space and temporary barriers, called HESCO barriers, consisting of large, sand-filled containers.
Spiegel says Davenport public works crews began assembling the larger flood wall last week. The design uses two lines of HESCO barriers on the ground with another two stacked on top.
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Flooding Adversely Affecting Midwest Farmers
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Midwestern farmers are enduring a spring like no other and are facing difficult choices in the coming weeks.
Most of the nation’s corn and soybeans are grown in the Midwest, and the region’s farmers have struggled for years with low prices, which got even worse due to a trade dispute between the U.S. and China.
This spring’s seemingly endless storms have compounded their problems, keeping many farmers from being able to plant their crops.
President Donald Trump promised $16 billion in aid, but that has added to farmers’ confusion about how to approach this strange spring because details about the payments won’t be released until later.
Jeff Jorgenson, a farmer from southwestern Iowa, says these weighty decisions are on his mind “24 hours a day.”
