Governor Branstad

Missouri River Flooding – State Joint Information Update

The Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management Division (HSEMD) continues to work closely with personnel from various state and federal agencies in response to flooding along the Missouri River in Western Iowa.  The State Emergency Operations Center will be staffed as warranted to provide response to declared counties.

Reminder: 

3:30 p.m.      Iowa HSEMD Administrator Derek Hill and Chief Operations Officer Joyce Flinn brief media on flooding along the Missouri River

Conference Call Dial-In Number – 1-800-645-8878

                        Conference Code: 003252

Note: Same conference call information to be used daily

NEW:  Stay Out of Flood Waters
Playing in or walking through flood waters is dangerous. Flood waters can harbor infectious diseases, chemical hazards and can cause injuries. The Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have a wealth of online information available.

IDPH: http://www.idph.state.ia.us/EmergencyResponse/Flooding.aspx

CDC: http://www.cdc.gov/healthywater/emergency/flood/standing.html

State Response Summary

• HSEMD
  • o   NEW:  Fremont County requested bentonite to repair a small area in the northeast corner of the secondary levee. HSEMD was able to obtain this material from Mills County.
  • o   Technical assistance has been requested from the Army Corps of Engineers for all counties along the Missouri River from Woodbury County south. Staging areas for water, sandbags and pumps have been established in Avoca, Onawa, and Denison. HSEMD continues to respond to resource requests from county emergency management coordinators.
  • o   The Iowa Concern Hotline has been designated by the Governor’s Office as the official disaster hotline. The hotline is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. All calls are free and confidential. 1-800-447-1985.

• Iowa Finance Authority (IFA)
  • NEW:  IFA has developed a rental housing resource guide for individuals who are seeking long term housing due to flooding. Access the guide at http://www.iowahomelandsecurity.org/disasters/disaster2011.html and select “Housing Resources.”

• DHS
  • Crisis counseling teams have been active in Blencoe and are going door to door in Council Bluffs to distribute evacuation plans.  They have also been invited to Hamburg, where many residents are expressing anxiety.
  • NEW:  Approximately 50 percent of the homes visited by the crisis counseling teams were unaware there was flooding, or potential for flooding, in their neighborhood.  Citizens in impacted areas are being asked to reach out to their neighbors, friends and family to make sure they know of this potentially dangerous situation and to urge them to stay aware through local media outlets.

• Iowa National Guard
  • The Iowa National Guard is providing levee patrol support in Mills and Pottawattamie counties.

• DOT
  • The Iowa Department of Transportation has made numerous road closures.  For complete information on road closures, visit http://www.iowadot.gov/floods/index.html or www.511ia.org, or call 5-1-1 or 1-800-288-1047.
  • Call center established for road closures:  1-866-452-851
  • DNR
    • DNR is providing technical assistance to waste water facilities, water supplies, industry, fuel stations, etc. Conservation officers in Hamburg and Missouri Valley are in place for rescue missions, if needed.
    • DOC
      • The Iowa Department of Corrections (DOC) has crews in Hamburg , Council Bluffs, and Onawa for sandbagging.

• DPH
  • At their request, DPH is working closely with Monona County Emergency Management and Burgess Medical Center for a potential patient evacuation plan.

EVACUATION SUMMARY

SHELTER SUMMARY – IOWA SHELTERS

SHELTER SUMMARY – NEBRASKA SHELTERS OPEN

County updates

• Woodbury
  • A Direct Federal Assistance Letter was submitted to the Army Corps of Engineers for emergency access and flood protection of city wells.
  • The Missouri River remains closed to all vessel traffic from the Iowa/Missouri border to Gavin’s Point Lock & Dam at Yankton, South Dakota.
• Monona
  • Monona County has requested evacuation planning and assistance for Burgess Medical Center in Onawa. Iowa Department of Public Health has taken on this task.
  • The Army Corps of Engineers has provided a 16-inch pump to the City of Blencoe.

• Harrison
  • Harrison County has requested Army Corps of Engineers expertise in assessing areas of concern and pump needs.
  • 1,500 feet of poly/3,000 sandbags have been requested to protect rural electric co-op.
  • Western Iowa Power customers have had their service interrupted. This service will not be restored until August.
• Pottawattamie
  • Seven Iowa HSEMD Incident Management Team members have been deployed to Pottawattamie County through Sunday.
  • Iowa National Guard is currently conducting levee patrols.
  • Direct Assistance has been requested for levee support from the Army Corps of Engineers.
• Mills
  • Iowa HSEMD has requested direct assistance from the Corps concerning boils in the levee near Pacific Junction.
• Fremont
  • The Iowa National Guard finished its mission in Hamburg to assist setting up HESCO barriers along Interstate 29.
  • Iowa State Patrol will assist Fremont County Sherriff in patrolling Interstate 29 corridor where residents have evacuated.

Donations and Volunteering

• Donations of items such as clothing, food, furniture, etc, are NOT needed at this time. Unsolicited donations cause additional staffing and storage problems that local officials do not have the resources to manage.
• If you want to help, cash is best. It doesn’t need to be sorted, stored or distributed, and cash allows the receiving voluntary agency to direct the donation to the most urgent needs. To donate cash, visit www.aidmatrixnetwork.org/CashDonations/Default2.aspx?ST=Iowa
• Those wishing to volunteer in a disaster-related capacity may sign up to do so at https://volunteer.truist.com/icovs/volunteer/register/.

For more information please visit www.iowahomelandsecurity.org  or  https://governor.iowa.gov/news/missouri-river-flooding .