A Year to Rember in the Midwest and Plains

The Midwest floods and severe weather is still a story that will be remembered for many years to come. However, a little bit of good news edged its way into the story Sunday, when the river at Iowa City crested at 3l.5 feet, a bit less than the forecast crest and also cresting a day or two earlier. Despite that, there is major flooding in places like Cedar Rapids. There is also significant flooding in and around Des Moines.

The loss to farmers and ranchers will be astronomical. An e-mail from a friend visiting in Iowa yesterday told of fields along the highways being covered with water as deep as a fencepost. Iowa, of course, is a major corn producer and for many the crop will be a total loss.

Waterloo, Iowa has already received 30 inches of rain this year, which is an impressive surplus of 16.22 inches. Similar stories can be told in parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Missouri.

All those zillions and trillions of gallons of rainwater will eventually have to come down the Mississippi River through the Port of New Orleans and to our benefactor, the Gulf of Mexico. Do not know yet what kind of flooding will occur on the Mississippi, but it should be substantial.

Another bad part of this story is the fact that the USA has already had the deadliest tornado season since 1998 and there is a long time to go.

We feel for all of those people affected. In thousands of homes the water was up to the ceiling and, for all practical purposes, the buildings are ruined. Even parts of downtown Des Moines were evacuated

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