Levee Break Sends Releases Torrents of Water
Crews are racing to build up a protective wall to keep floodwaters from reaching a small Iowa town after the swollen Missouri River punched a massive hole in the main levee that protects the community.
Two levees in northwest Missouri ruptured yesterday, sending water over rural farmland.
Floodwaters are expected by tomorrow to reach the top of a secondary levee protecting Hamburg, home to about 1,100 people. The Army Corps of Engineers says crews are working to add another 3 feet to that levee. If it breaks, parts of Hamburg could be under 10 feet of standing water.
Joplin Death Toll Rises by Two
A Joplin city official says two more fatalities have been reported from the tornado that devastated the southwest Missouri city last month. Lynn Iliff Onstot, public information officer for Joplin, said as of yesterday there were 153 fatalities from the tornado. Onstot said the city received the updated list from the Jasper County coroner and the Missouri Department of Public Safety.
Jasper County coroner Rob Chappel told The Associated Press the two new deaths were from people who had been hospitalized with injuries.
Last month’s tornado is the nation's deadliest in more than six decades.
Mo. Loan Authority Providing $1 million for College
Missouri's college loan authority is providing $1 million for incentives to high school graduates who score well on math and science tests.
Legislation passed this year authorizes college grants of $500 to students who score at least a three or better - on a scale of zero to five - on at least two Advanced Placement tests in math or science.
Based on figures from the Department of Higher Education, the new program is expected to cost a little over $80,000 a year. The Missouri Higher Education Loan Authorityhas agreed to provide $1 million for the program, which could be enough to last for several years.
The grants are available only to students who attended Missouri public high schools and also are receiving certain other state scholarships.
