August 22, 2007

Nearly Two Dozen Killed In Midwestern Floods

Thousands of homes are destroyed, crucial roads are submerged and at least 22 people are dead after two storm systems converged in the Midwest this week, dousing the region with heavy rain that has given way to massive flooding and mudslides.

The deadly storms moved into Ohio and Iowa from the north today, bringing fresh flood warnings for the residents of those states. The Weather Channel is predicting that "repeated bouts of downpours and nasty thunderstorms" will continue to wreak havoc and hamper rescue efforts in the Midwest through Friday.

The heavy downpours and brutal thunderstorms are being attributed to a collision of a northern storm system and the remnants of Tropical Storm Erin, which ravaged Texas and Oklahoma earlier this week.

Wisconsin Gov. James Doyle has declared several disaster areas and at least one emergency zone throughout the state, and officials are requesting federal aid to deal with the damage, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports.

Meanwhile, federal officials began assessing the damage in Minnesota today as well to determine if a federal disaster declaration is in order. Visiting the state yesterday, President Bush said residents could expect a "flood of help" from the federal government.

CNN reports that, as of this morning, "flood or flash-flood warnings were in effect for parts of Texas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa, Colorado, Indiana, Ohio, Wisconsin, Illinois and Missouri."

Posted at 2:29 PM
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