Widespread flooding hits Missouri, Illinois with rivers still rising

Dec 30 (Reuters) - Rain-swollen rivers across Missouri were
still rising on Wednesday, with widespread flooding forcing the
evacuation of hundreds of people, closing part of a major
interstate highway and threatening to wash out scores of
structures.
At least 13 people have died in Missouri since the weekend,
when days of downpours from a massive winter storm system
triggered the worst flooding in two decades, Governor Jay Nixon
said.
"It's very clear that Missouri is in the midst of a very
historic and dangerous flooding event," Nixon said during a
Tuesday news conference.
Several major rivers and tributaries in Missouri and
Illinois were poised to crest at record levels, the National
Weather Service said. Some of the rivers would continue to rise
until Saturday.
At the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers,
about 20 miles (32 km) north of St. Louis, residents of the
towns West Alton and Arnold were told to evacuate on Tuesday.
Flooding in the middle portion of the Mississippi River and
its tributaries may reach the highest levels in recorded
history, the forecasting site AccuWeather said.
The U.S. Coast Guard closed a five-mile (8 km) stretch of
the Mississippi River near St. Louis to all vessel traffic due
to hazardous conditions.
The National Weather Service forecast the Mississippi River
at the Chester, Illinois, river gauge about 60 miles (100 km)
south of St. Louis would crest at 49.7 feet (15.1 meters) on
Friday - matching the 1993 record.
The floodwaters have forced the closured of roadways and
highways, including a portion of Interstate 44, a major highway
that runs from west Texas to St. Louis, the Missouri Department
of Transportation said on Wednesday.
Sewage has been flowing into the fast-rising Meramec River
near St. Louis since Monday, when floodwater disabled a sewer
treatment plant, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
In Illinois, some inmates were moved out of the Menard
Correctional Center, a maximum security prison on the banks of
the Mississippi River, and sandbags and drinking water were
prepared in anticipation of flooding in lower level cell blocks,
Illinois officials said in a statement.
Governor Bruce Rauner on Tuesday issued a state disaster
proclamation for seven counties to help with response and
recovery.
Nixon called out the National Guard to direct traffic away
from closed roads in his state and urged people not to drive in
flooded areas. Most deaths in flooding occur when cars are swept
away.