Mississippi flooding reaches St. Louis

by julianw | June 30, 2008 at 09:12 am

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The Mississippi River continues to bring flooding woes to the Midwest. Water levels in St. Louis are now nine feet above flood markers, forcing local businesses to close and preventing barges from reaching the city's commercial harbour.

The National Weather Service says the swollen Mississippi River is about to crest at just under nine feet above flood stage at St. Louis.

The river's high water has closed only the President Casino and a handful of other businesses along the city's riverfront.

Upriver from St. Louis, the river is slowly receding in hard-hit towns like Winfield and Foley, Mo., but it will be some time before residents can assess the damage.

Flooding on the Mississippi River has closed the St. Louis harbor to barge traffic, halting commercial traffic at an important junction of several major waterways, said the U.S. Coast Guard.
On Saturday, the Coast Guard closed the Mississippi River from mile marker 174 to 189, which includes the harbor. Vessels with two or fewer barges can travel during daylight hours. There was no estimate on when the harbor would reopen.

In addition, the Illinois River is closed from mile marker 0 to 24.