High water leads to flood warnings, lock closures

Chicago-Numerous flood watches and warnings were posted last week after powerful storms ripped through the Northern Plains, Great Lakes, Eastern Cornbelt, and Northeast regions. Wet, heavy snows blanketed parts of the Dakotas, Minnesota, Wisconsin, northern Iowa, and Michigan, while torrential rains came to central and eastern Missouri, southern Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and much of the Northeast. As a result, the National Weather Service issued flood warnings at midweek for portions of the Illinois River, and for many locations on the Ohio River, including Paducah, Ky., Brookport, Ill., Shawneetown, Ill., Golconda, Ill., Grand Chain Dam, Ill., and Cairo, Ill. In Indiana, a flood watch was issued at midweek for portions of the Kankakee River in northern Indiana; the St. Joseph River in Allen and DeKalb Counties; the Maumee River in portions of Allen and Paulding Counties; the Wabash River in areas of Huntington, Wells, and Adams Counties; the Eel River in Cass, Miami, and Wabash Counties; and the Tiffin River in Defiance, Fulton, and Williams Counties. High water levels and fast moving currents forced lock and dam closures up and down the Mississippi River last week, keeping barges away from docks and halting fertilizer movement at those locations. Local reports said Lock and Dam 14 in LeClaire, Iowa, shut down on April 19, and crews closed Rock Island’s Lock and Dam 15 at Rock Island, Ill., on April 20. Several others were shut down last week between Dubuque, Iowa, and New Boston, Ill. In eastern South Dakota, last week’s moisture caused both the Big Sioux and the James Rivers to swell again, but local reports said river levels were below the record crests reached in March. Localized flooding in North Dakota caused authorities to close portions of three state highways last week. Flood watches and a hazardous weather outlook were also posted at midweek for parts of the Mid-Atlantic, with heavy rain, hail, and potentially damaging winds in the forecast for some locations in Maryland and Virginia.