Mississippi River

As floodwaters slowly receded from much of Iowa on Wednesday, authorities focused their attention on a swollen Mississippi River that punched through at least two levees in western Illinois and increasingly threatened hamlets in Missouri. Federal officials said as many as 30 levees were in peril, mostly in rural stretches of northern Missouri and western Illinois. No large population centers were threatened. "The concern now is the Mississippi River between the Quad Cities and St.

With floodwaters receding in much of Iowa, the destruction moved downstream Tuesday as emergency crews and residents raced to bolster the levees that protect dozens of Mississippi River towns. National Guardsmen joined hundreds of volunteers in filling sandbags and reinforcing earthen barriers in southeastern Iowa, eastern Missouri and western Illinois.

The Mississippi River bridge in Winona that was closed abruptly because of rust and corrosion has reopened, to passenger vehicles only. The Highway 43 bridge was temporarily closed 11 days earlier, severing the only link for miles between Minnesota and Wisconsin, drastically lengthening many commutes. Jeremy Smith, a Wisconsin resident, didn't want to travel 70 miles to work with gas at $4 a gallon, so he took a canoe across the river instead. Thousands of others opted for a ferry ride.

Rising rivers wiped out an Iowa railroad bridge, flooded Illinois farmland and forced residents along the Mississippi River to prepare for what could be the worst flooding since 1993. After fast-moving water in Waterloo, Iowa, swept away the railroad bridge, city officials closed five other bridges. In nearby Cedar Falls, residents and downtown business owners prepared to evacuate as the Cedar River threatened to top a levee today. In Wisconsin, engineers and contractors began repairing damage done when 267-acre Lake Delton overflowed and washed away three houses.

At least 18 people were injured when a boat carrying Louisiana prison employees collided with another vessel on the Mississippi River. Louisiana State Penitentiary spokeswoman Kathy Fontenot said at least two people were seriously hurt. The crash occurred during a shift change. The Coast Guard said all aboard had been accounted for.

A gorgeous, sunny day didn't fool dozens of residents as they packed their belongings into trucks Thursday and high-tailed it to high ground. The rising, churning waters of the Meramec River foretold disaster: By today, the river's projected all-time crest of more than 31 feet was expected to send floodwaters gushing through the low-lying downtown, swamping the streets and floors of dozens of houses in this hamlet southwest of St. Louis.

Developer sean cummings envisions miles of parks stretching along the east bank of the Mississippi River. He envisions daring new architecture to complement the old: an amphitheater, cruise ship terminals, a hotel, a chapel. His design team has sketched pictures of elegant, glassy mid-rise residential buildings overlooking the historic, bohemian backstreets of the Bywater District.

Divers found another body in the Mississippi River, raising the death toll to nine in the Aug. 1 highway bridge collapse in Minneapolis. Authorities identified the body as that of Richard Chit, 20, of St. Anthony. Chit's mother is among four people known to be missing. About 100 were injured in the collapse. Eight remain hospitalized, their conditions ranging from serious to good.

Divers scoured treacherous waters searching for bodies on Saturday, stopping for a brief period when a rainstorm sent twisted metal, glass and debris whirling dangerously in the Mississippi River. Time ticked by too slowly for frustrated families waiting a fourth day for news about loved ones whom they had not heard from since Wednesday night, when the Interstate 35W bridge buckled, killing at least five people and injuring nearly 100 others.