The interstate you see running through town is the only way to go to get from the North side of town to the South side, so a town of 120,000 has one road....yes it has taken up 2 hours to go across town (picture #14 gives you an idea) also picture #55 shows the only bridge deemed safe so far.
Picture #37 shows you Quaker Oats (Largest Cereal Manufacturer in the country). Yes Capn' Crunch is going to cost more this year.
#41 shows the island in the middle of the river known as May's island. The first building is City Hall, the next building is the County Courthouse and the building hiding behind that is the county jail. You can kind of see the bridges causing wakes in this picture also.
#45 Most of Downtown..all I can say is WOW. I feel bad knowing I'm sitting here in my comfy house watching tv...I consider myself very lucky.
#66 The Nuclear Power plant 6 miles from my house, damn the water got close, and the town it's located in has been totally devastated, every home and business.
So far the town is still moving forward, but very slowly. Our water capacity is running only at 50% so we can only shower every other day. I'm using a bucket from my kids swimming pool to fill my toilet tanks so we can flush the brown on down and we are eating off paper plates and plastic silverware at home and at restaurant's to conserve water.
They did finally open the interstate south of town so I can now resume my normal route to work (Oh Joy!!), heck they were flying in nurses from towns east of here the the hospital I work at as all roads from he east were closed.
If anyone is a licensed contractor we'll have work for ya here for quite some time to come!!
Dan
------------------
IP: Logged
01:54 AM
PFF
System Bot
Wichita Member
Posts: 20696 From: Wichita, Kansas Registered: Jun 2002
Thank heavens for good weather this week. I get my News from Des Moines, they got hit bad but not nearly what Cedar Rapids got. Des Moines had a good wake up call in '93. When they lost 'Water Works' things went really bad. '93 was a Hundred Year Flood. Des Moines got caught with their pants down IMHO. Afterwards they built up some real flood control, government designed and funded. '08 is a 500 year Flood, I'm not saying they got off unscaythed, but for the most part, the flood control worked as designed.
Iowa didn't get nailed the way that New Orleans got hit with Katrina / Rita in terms of people affected. But in terms of area affected....?
I'm hoping that Iowa won't descend into the political backstabbing that NO experienced, I think Iowans will be above finger-pointing for political gain. Non-the-less we'll rebuild, better than before, and learn from this. We'll be better prepared for next time. . . Contractors are welcome. Irish Travelers, Scam Jobbers, not so welcome. Shoot, Shovel, and Shut-up. Iowa has a lot of turned up soil at any time of the year, Iowans have a way of looking out for each other.
------------------ Ol' Paint, 88 Base coupe auto. Turning white on top, like owner. Leaks a little, like owner. Doesn't smoke....... OK, we're trying to quit.
IP: Logged
03:43 AM
Wichita Member
Posts: 20696 From: Wichita, Kansas Registered: Jun 2002
Thank heavens for good weather this week. I get my News from Des Moines, they got hit bad but not nearly what Cedar Rapids got. Des Moines had a good wake up call in '93. When they lost 'Water Works' things went really bad. '93 was a Hundred Year Flood. Des Moines got caught with their pants down IMHO. Afterwards they built up some real flood control, government designed and funded. '08 is a 500 year Flood, I'm not saying they got off unscaythed, but for the most part, the flood control worked as designed.
There is two rivers that run through the middle here in the city that I live. The two rivers conjoined right in the downtown area.
The Arkansas River used to flood all the time back in the day and would flood the downtown area. Then some crazy guy back in the day said that there needs to be a massive flood control project to protect the city from a 500 year flood.
People thought the guy was nuts and his idea was a big waste of money, but I guess the right people thought he wasn't. So in the 1950's they build a huge flood control project, which we call it the "Big Ditch" that can divert the Arkansas River overflow through a 900' wide channel that is 18 miles long, through 90 miles of levees and 50 miles of connecting channels.
It was completely overkill back in the day and it was heavily scrutinized for its cost and overreach. But one year we had some serious rains and the "Big Ditch" had 17 feet deep water (most of the time it's just a small creek) and it had plenty of room to spare. The Arkansas River... didn't flood Wichita.
Sometimes it does pay to overly prepare yourself for the worse.
IP: Logged
04:11 AM
DtheC Member
Posts: 3395 From: Newton Iowa, USA Registered: Sep 2005
Originally posted by Wichita: Sometimes it does pay to overly prepare yourself for the worse.
And anything worth doing, is worth over-doing? How about putting some land into a government subsidised program to maintain up stream flood plains? Maybe government money should be granted to farmers for allowing their land to be non-productive, in an odd year?
[This message has been edited by DtheC (edited 06-18-2008).]
IP: Logged
04:42 AM
DanFiero Member
Posts: 2815 From: Cedar Rapids, Iowa Registered: Jul 2002
Man do I feel special!!! Marine One just flew over my house. Not sure if he was in it, or if they were just doing a test run as he's not suppose to visit until tomorrow.
Dan
IP: Logged
06:32 PM
2birds Member
Posts: 1685 From: Ottumwa, Iowa USA Registered: Nov 1999
I grew up in Marion, so it's sad to see my home turf like that. My wife's parents still live there, and my sister-in-law works at Mercy Hospital.
We did alright here in Ottumwa, except for people who had cabins and campers along the river. Most of the folks I know that did were ready for it. They did learn a little from '93.
I'm hoping that Iowa won't descend into the political backstabbing that NO experienced, I think Iowans will be above finger-pointing for political gain. Non-the-less we'll rebuild, better than before, and learn from this. We'll be better prepared for next time.
Iowans and others of the Midwest have known the value of HARD WORK and ACHIEVEMENT. They are not afraid to do work in the face of adversity and even in disasters will get up and help themselves.
In Chapman KS, 85% of that community was wiped out by an EF-4 Tornado. So many people in that community pulled together and helped the less fortinute, that when the red cross arrived and set up a shelter...
Only 2 people showed up to use it.
and they were from out of town... were there when the storm hit.
IP: Logged
09:24 PM
cliffw Member
Posts: 37553 From: Bandera, Texas, USA Registered: Jun 2003
Originally posted by htexans1: Iowans and others of the Midwest have known the value of HARD WORK and ACHIEVEMENT. They are not afraid to do work in the face of adversity and even in disasters will get up and help themselves.
I am proud. Their work has yet to begin. My best to them. I have been through it.
[This message has been edited by cliffw (edited 06-18-2008).]
IP: Logged
10:01 PM
madcurl Member
Posts: 21401 From: In a Van down by the Kern River Registered: Jul 2003
Originally posted by DanFiero: That's the Duane Arnold Nuclear Power Plant...it ran at 100% during the whole ordeal. They said it was safe.
Dan
Im thinking they shut down one of our states southern plants ( coal, not nuclear ) when we started to flood ( we are further north of course from these images, so we are starting to dry out in the lesser hit areas. )
IP: Logged
09:08 AM
blackrams Member
Posts: 32805 From: Covington, TN, USA Registered: Feb 2003
Kind of makes me want to buy a house boat. I really feel for Iowa, my understanding is that emergency relief is coming. Iowans are generally a strong group. I realize there isn't much we as individuals can do to help but I'm still pulling for you all up there.
I was reading an article about this today and how some people believe that "we" humans have contributed to this devastation by taking so much land out of it natural state and making it into agricultrual production. I understand the thought process. Natural vegetation normally produces deep roots that assist the soil in absorbing the moisture. Most of our ag crops don't do that and also leave a lot of the soil exposed for long periods of time. That also results in a lot of erosion and rivers filling up with top soil which means that water doesn't have a deep crevice to go into, so the river spreads out. Natural vegetation tends to secure the soil. There is no doubt a 500 year flood is going to cause some major issues but, I can see where leaving some of that ground in it's natural state would be a good thing. Now, convincing a farmer to leave his ground undisturbed in a non-producing state, that's another issue. Especially when he's paying taxes on that real estate and it would be sitting there not making him a penny without some sort of incentive.
Ron
IP: Logged
09:27 AM
cliffw Member
Posts: 37553 From: Bandera, Texas, USA Registered: Jun 2003
Yup, this is terrible, no doubt about it. The people of the midwest are strong. They don't need to have the government bail them out (except maybe give some buckets to the politicans!). They are prepared as best as possible.
Where is the outcry from the media, where are the hollywood actors? Again.... people from the hard hit areas are strong and will take care of their own.
J.
IP: Logged
09:35 AM
blackrams Member
Posts: 32805 From: Covington, TN, USA Registered: Feb 2003
Originally posted by jaskispyder: Where is the outcry from the media, where are the hollywood actors? Again.... people from the hard hit areas are strong and will take care of their own.
J.
Excellent point.
Ron
IP: Logged
09:37 AM
blackrams Member
Posts: 32805 From: Covington, TN, USA Registered: Feb 2003
Kind of makes me want to buy a house boat. I really feel for Iowa, my understanding is that emergency relief is coming. Iowans are generally a strong group. I realize there isn't much we as individuals can do to help but I'm still pulling for you all up there.
I was reading an article about this today and how some people believe that "we" humans have contributed to this devastation by taking so much land out of it natural state and making it into agricultrual production. I understand the thought process. Natural vegetation normally produces deep roots that assist the soil in absorbing the moisture. Most of our ag crops don't do that and also leave a lot of the soil exposed for long periods of time. That also results in a lot of erosion and rivers filling up with top soil which means that water doesn't have a deep crevice to go into, so the river spreads out. Natural vegetation tends to secure the soil. There is no doubt a 500 year flood is going to cause some major issues but, I can see where leaving some of that ground in it's natural state would be a good thing. Now, convincing a farmer to leave his ground undisturbed in a non-producing state, that's another issue. Especially when he's paying taxes on that real estate and it would be sitting there not making him a penny without some sort of incentive.
Ron
To my previous post/point:
Iowa flooding could be man’s fault, experts say
Where some blame days of rain, others point to an altered landscape
Where is the outcry from the media, where are the hollywood actors? Again.... people from the hard hit areas are strong and will take care of their own.
