Missouri eyes river as Iowa eyes cleanup

ST. LOUIS, June 23 (UPI) -- Mississippi River communities in Missouri watched several levees for leaks as forecasters predict river levels would crest Wednesday.

At Winfield, Mo., crews worked to contain what Lincoln County Sheriff's Department spokesman Andy Binder called a "serious overtopping" of the Sandy Creek levee, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Monday. Fire figthers knocked on doors Sunday, urging Winfield residents to evacuate.

Emergency officials were keeping watch on another levee between Winfield and Foley for signs of seepage or collapse.

"We didn't anticipate so much saturation along the levees," Binder said.

In St. Charles County, volunteers and emergency personnel spent the weekend sandbagging to avert a spillover at the Elm Point levee.

The National Weather Service forecast the river Wednesday would rise to 37.2 feet in St. Louis, where flood stage is 30 feet.

In Iowa, meanwhile, lawmakers and disaster recovery experts warned that the state faces a long rebuilding effort requiring considerable federal investment.

The initial bill for the federal government is expected to exceed $3 billion for mostly non-agricultural recovery, The Des Moines (Iowa) Register reported.

The U.S. House of Representatives approved $2.65 billion in disaster aid and the measure is on track to be signed into law, the Des Moines newspaper said.