Muskrats weakened a Mississippi river levee north of St. Louis, causing flooding in Lincoln County, Missouri today.   For those keeping score at home, a muskrat is a large semi-aquatic rodent that’s native to North America.   Their homes (or “lodges”) are burrowed holes they build for their families - big families, these guys are prolific breeders.   Unfortunately, these holes caused “seepage“, where river water starts eating the levee from the inside out until it fails.   The river breached the levee early this morning around 5:30am.    Making matters worse, this was the last remaining levee in the county protecting homes; over 700 homes had already been inundated by the waters from previous levee breaks this week.   Massive home and farm rescue and evacuation efforts are already underway.

This isn’t the first time that animals have wreaked havoc on the Mississippi River.

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The TakePart Top 10 Weekly Roundup is a compilation of the week’s most notable stories from our entertainment-meets-social-action blogging network. Check out some of our most popular stories of the week, as well as a few TakePart blogger favorites!

Nicole Hughes:

U.S. Media Ignores Link Between Midwest Floods and Global Warming

Top 10 Houseplants for Removing Indoor Air Pollution

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Andy Kondrat:

Dubai to Build Rotating Positive Energy Tower

Bioethicist Peter Singer Tackles World Food Shortage

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Jon Popham:

Americacorps Workers Assist Flood Ravaged Town

Australians “Out-Fat” Americans

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Giulia Rozzi:

Progressive Book Club

Oprah Recommends “A New Earth”

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Gina Telaroli:

Human Rights Watch 2008 Film Festival Update

SilverDocs 2008 Update

A recent Grist article called out the US media for ignoring the links between record Midwest floods and global warming. This type of flooding in the Midwest used to happen once every hundred years, says the article, but the frequency with which it’s taking place now is precisely what scientists have said is to be expected as the earth continues to warm. In fact, in 2007 we saw the second highest levels of precipitation in the United States in recorded history, according to NCDC’s Climate Extremes Index:

A 2004 analysis [PDF] by NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center found an increase during the 20th century of “precipitation, temperature, streamflow, heavy and very heavy precipitation and high streamflow in the East.” They found a 14 percent increase in “heavy rain events” of greater than 2 inches in one day, and a 20 percent increase in “very heavy rain events” — best described as deluges — greater than 4 inches in one day. These extreme downpours are precisely what is predicted by global warming scientists and models [PDF]. [grist.org]

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Cedar Rapids, Iowa- The city that “would never flood” is 19 feet under. According to the AP, the Cedar River poured over its banks yesterday, forcing the evacuation of more than 3,000 homes, causing a railroad bridge to collapse and leaving cars underwater on downtown streets. Officials estimated that 100 blocks were underwater in Cedar Rapids, where several days of preparation could not hold back t he rain-swollen river.

A downtown hospital was forced to evacuate and all 176 patients, including about 30 patients in a nursing home facility at the hospital, were being transfered to other hospitals in the region.
takepart by donating to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund.

Related:
Waters in Flooded City in Iowa Likely to Crest Soon
Cedar Rapids struggles to endure historic flood
Midwest floods expose aging, weak protection
Inconvenient Truth of the Day