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By Staci DaSilva
sdasilva@kcautv.com
In less than 24 hours, the DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge near Missouri Valley, Iowa has been overwhelmed by the Missouri River.
All this fast flooding is due to a secondary levee breach nearby. The main levee did not protect this area, so crews built a second levee, but they didn't think the water would go as high
Tom Cox, the Manager of DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge explained, "The rest of it was all protected by levee except for this 3 mile stretch. The original height of that levee was determined by the flood crests projected at that time."
Increased releases from Gavins Point Dam mean increased pressure on levees, until they just can't handle it all anymore. And it hasn't taken long for the Missouri River to show who's boss.
It's all moving so fast that Tom Cox has to reroute his exit.
"In the last 5 minutes, we just got to report that it's raised 6 inches and we can't go out that way so we have to go out a different way," said Cox.
Homes here on Casey Trail off Highway 30 were advised to evacuate after the breach, and the Iowa DOT says it could close the road between Missouri Valley, Iowa and Blair, Nebraska at any time.
While this flood has already devastated the community, the worst part is yet to come. "The conditions of the levee itself and the ground around it just aren't allowing us to get heavy equipment in there to fix it. We're just going to have to let it flow," said Cox.
Highway 30 will remain open as long as it stays dry.
