COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa - Dozens of levees have been damaged or destroyed in flooding in Iowa and Nebraska, leaving roads and interstates with very little protection from more flooding.
"That becomes even pressing even in this coming week." Says Iowa Department of Transportation Director Mark Lowe in a joint Iowa-Nebraska press conference in Council Bluffs.
"There could be re-flooding in some areas, especially I-680 corridor, and the I-29 corridor especially in the area of the 34 ramps." He said. Lowe says the whole levee system is damaged, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is working on a temporary fix.
With one to two feet of new snow this week in South Dakota and Minnesota, a quick April snow-melt will add more runoff in the already high Missouri River.
Lowe says it's expected to take months to repair and reopen all of the roads; some are still under water. Iowa repairs are estimated at $70-to-$90-million dollars; in Nebraska, $160-million.
Photos and maps from WHO-TV 13.