Flooding in the Midwest has caused extensive damage, toppling a bridge, weakening a dam, and prompting the evacuation of a town.
Approximately 3 million people in Iowa, South Dakota, Minnesota, and Nebraska have been affected.
According to Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, the record floods caused “severe and widespread” devastation along the Iowa-South Dakota border. At least one individual in Iowa and one in South Dakota has passed away.
“Flooding impacts will continue” in sections of Iowa and South Dakota, “but the chance for additional rainfall in the next 2 to 3 days is low,” according to a National Weather Service statement issued Monday afternoon.
Iowa
The sheriff’s office in Clay County, Iowa, reported that one individual drowned over the weekend as a result of the flooding.
Spencer, a city of about 11,000 inhabitants and the county seat of Clay County was cut off from the rest of the state by flooding. According to Spencer Fire Chief Jesse Coulson, hundreds have been evacuated to shelters, and 383 rescues have taken place.
Nate Gastelum, 20, said he and his Spencer roommate understood they needed to evacuate while at home.
“We started at the street and then we ended up at the back of the house because we had to keep backing up,” according to Gastelum. “There was just, like, an eerie feeling, and me and my roommate were like, ‘Yeah, we need to go.'”
Gastelum stated that his basement had been flooded and that his house would be uninhabitable for some time.
“But that’s nothing compared to what happened to other people around us,” remarked the gentleman. “In the south side of town, those houses are almost destroyed.”
Gastelum described collapsing houses around town, automobiles flooded or floating on the streets, and widespread power outages. People stuck in their homes have had to leave by jumping from upper stories into boats, according to Gastelum.
Nonetheless, he noted, the city has banded together to assist those most afflicted.
“The best thing about this town is that everybody that wasn’t greatly impacted is opening their doors to as many people as they can fit,” he told me. “Like my mom, she has taken in 11 people and a couple of dogs because their house got destroyed.”
“I had my truck, and I was helping families get to safe zones in my truck bed,” according to Gastelum.
Reynolds went to multiple locations in northwest Iowa on Monday. She declared a disaster for one county and an emergency for five others.
“In almost every community impacted, the river crested several feet above 1993 flood levels,” Reynolds said during a news conference on Sunday.
The Sioux City fire marshal described the flooding as “unprecedented,” and said it is difficult to foresee what will happen next given the area’s lack of experience with such a disaster.
“Nobody has experienced this level of rainfall and this much water at one time,” Fire Marshal Mark Aesoph said, warning that the evacuation zone will continue to expand as the water rises within a makeshift barrier designed to contain the floods.
According to the National Weather Service, a flood warning remains in force for sections of northwest Iowa until 1 p.m. Tuesday.
South Dakota
A railroad bridge between Sioux City, Iowa, and North Sioux City, South Dakota, collapsed Sunday night, plunging into the Big Sioux River.
According to the South Dakota Highway Patrol, one person died after driving a utility task vehicle that rolled down an embankment created by a washed-out roadway.
Gov. Kristi Noem urged residents to prioritize their own and their families’ safety, advising them to avoid flooding.
“Throughout this entire incident, we did have one loss of life,” Noem told reporters. “And so the perspective of how dangerous this is is becoming very real for that family.”
Noem warned that the coming days would be “tough” and that the state’s devastation from the storm will last for months.
“In case we needed any reminder of the destructive nature of water,” Noem remarked Monday at a news conference, “we are seeing it in real-time today.”
Southeast South Dakota is still under a flood warning until 1 p.m. Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service.
Minnesota
A dam in Rapidan in south-central Minnesota faces “imminent failure” due to flood-related structural damage. Nonetheless, it is operational for the time being, and local officials say there is no intention of a “mass evacuation” while they continue to watch the situation.
The National Weather Service has issued a flash flood warning for locations downstream of the Rapidan Dam on the Blue Earth River until 10:30 a.m. Tuesday. The organization advised individuals in low-lying regions below the dam to relocate to higher ground immediately as per NBC News.
The rest of southern Minnesota remains under a flood warning until Tuesday, with a flood watch in force in some southwestern areas.