This video is dedicated to the love of my life, Crystal Andersen, and the many years we’ve spent together and the many decades we’ll be together. Happy 3rd wedding anniversary… All my love!
Thanks to Animoto and Facebook for helping to assemble the above tribute video!
Newsweek’sMatthew Philips did an interview with Richard Nathan, co-director of the Rockefeller Institute, about a study commissioned in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and its implications for those suffering in Iowa, Illinois and Missouri.
What lessons can be applied to the situation along the Mississippi River Valley?
The questions of intergovernmental collisions do provide lessons for Iowa in that you have all these interests at stake, the agriculture and farm interests, the developers and business interests, poor people and social programs. I can say that in Mississippi, they had a pretty strong structure to put people together and make decisions, which wasn’t the case in Louisiana. People can talk forever about wanting to do things, but it all boils down to how can you get a structure in place that will have some closing capabilities. American government is pluralist. It’s very change resistant. The sooner they realize that, the better.
For those who need assistance in the Cedar Rapids corridor or know someone who does, for those who want to Volunteer, and for those who want to Donate… head on over to the Corridor Recovery website.
To give you an impression of what the damage is like in Iowa, check out the following videos.
Water has started to recede in Cedar Rapids, but they had more rain yesterday morning. Sounds like Iowa City and Des Moines are not out of the woods yet with more water coming downstream. Many roads are still closed around CR and although water is now below the bridges in downtown, the will need to have thorough inspections before they’ll allow traffic through. Here are a couple more articles I saw this morning…
This update is from Crystal as relayed to her by her family in Iowa.
It’s really terrible. They expect the river to crest at roughly 31 and a half feet, which is 12 feet above the level it reached in the flood of ‘93 and what is also considered a 500 year flood (1 in 500 chance). Mercy Hospital had to evacuate all patients including their nursing home wing. Both major hospitals, police HQ, City Hall, the Quaker Oats plant and many many other businesses and residents are without power - I think 14,000 customers. The water system is down to 1 pump from 6 and water is being pumped in from Marion’s system using a fire truck. My Aunt Kathleen’s house is just west of the river downtown and at least the first story is under water, she wasn’t able to get much out other than her and the cats who are now staying with my Grandma down the block from my parents.
Not sure if you remember the route from the Clarion Hotel where you stayed for the wedding out to Springville, but you would have driven along Hwy 30 to the east and just before the exchange for Hwy 13 to go north, you would have crossed a bridge over a river. At the time I’m sure you could see sand dunes from how low the river had receded in recent years. As of Thursday afternoon, water had risen to car-bumper high on that bridge and people were being provided state trooper escorts across the bridge to get home. I’m sure they’ve shut it down in since then. Interstate 80 is closed down by Iowa City as it’s submerged for a stretch there as well. So many road closures all across eastern Iowa. Good thing school is done for the year. Many people can’t even get to work, but don’t need to go since power is out.
You might check out the Cedar Rapids Gazette website. Lots of pictures, videos and stories on current conditions.
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