Gary, Ellis, Amelia and I are surviving in Iowa as the flood waters recede. Currently we are housing some family friends who were evacuated due to flooding. The waters are not yet below flood level, and the University of Iowa Campus has been shut down for …
I have to thank Leanne for sending me to Kohl’s back in April to buy a tablecloth, because that’s when I first discovered they have amazing clearance sales. I bought a $7 sweater that jumped out at me at the time, but couldn’t search for …
The southeast corner of the folks’ yard is now completed. Last month, Don, Leanne, Monte, and I extended the yard fabric and mulch to include the bottom part of the ditch and planted pink roses Dad had ordered. Monte and I then finished covering the rest of the corner and added some white and yellow rose plants purchased in Grand Island. The roses planted in April are in full bloom, and the newly planted white ones are doing okay, but the pink roses might not make it from being drowned out with the standing water. (See my previous post “Ditch Water.”) We discovered that the culvert is clogged, so the water doesn’t drain out like it ought.
Dad bought petunias and marigolds (99 cents per 4 pack @ Shopko) to add more color to the south of the rose garden. He started the planting himself, but when I went to check on him, he said it was a struggle for him to do it, so I finished up.
Mom came out to sweep the sidewalk:
Mom showing me how well the roses are blooming:
Iowa may still be under water, but our basement is finally water-free, and the floor is actually getting dry spots for the first time in over 3 weeks! But more rain may be on the way this week.
It appears that the Coralville Reservoir crested early this morning, and the Iowa River is cresting now in Iowa City about 1.5 feet lower than predicted. However, water will continue to flow over the spillway through this week even without additional rains. Unlike the Cedar …
I received this email from my brother today:
The situation is getting bad in Iowa City today, but at least our internet connection is back up. They want sandbagging help at our building on campus, but we are still at home this morning. I’m afraid that if we go to work, we won’t be able to get back across the river later to get home. It sounds like they may have to close the Burlington St bridge, which would leave I-80 as the only remaining way to cross the river. Ellis and Amelia’s daycare/preschool is closing at noon. A couple of teenage girls whose family got evacuated last night are going to stay with us beginning this afternoon. Tonya and I will probably go help somewhere on this side of the river while they watch the kids.
The river is well above the previous record, and is expected to go 3 or more feet higher in the coming days. I don’t think they really know how high it’s going to get, because it’s so unprecedented. My fear is that the huge levees the National Guard was putting up to protect campus are going to make it even worse upstream in Coralville.
Gary
You can keep track of the river status by clicking here.