The New York Times reports,  The swollen Mississippi River surged over nearly a dozen levees in the St. Louis area and flooding vast areas of farmland, as the region’s growing crisis pushed corn and soy prices toward record levels. The runaway river claimed one Missouri town late Wednesday night when it broke a levee in Winfield, just outside of St. Louis, leaving a 150-foot hole, deluging the small community and sending a surge of water downstream toward the next levee. Crews of firefighters spent the night evacuating residents, in some cases by boat, as workers fought to contain the river further south.

St. Louis is the next major city in the path of the surging river, which is expected to crest at 40 feet there on Saturday.

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Mississippi Surges Over Nearly a Dozen Levees
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Mississippi River threatens more Midwest levees

Cedar Falls, Iowa - There was a mandatory evacuation of the downtown area yesterday due to the swollen Cedar River.

The small city of Vinton, home to 5,000 were forced to evacuate a 15 block area where water was already 3 feet deep. In Waterloo, Iowa, water swept away a railroad bridge and prompted the city to shut its downtown and close five bridges.

A sandbagged levee has so far been preventing Cedar River from rising out of its banks and flooding Cedar Falls, but city officials are calling for more volunteers to help secure the levee as more rain is expected in the area.

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Related:

• Flooding will likely reach record levels in Northeast Iowa
• Cedar Falls being evacuated, Des Moines prepares for flood
• Rising Waters Pose a Threat
• Sandbagged levee holds in Iowa, protects city