| Re: Iowa Floods
Posted by JULIE (Webmistress) on June 18, 2008, 10:44 am, in reply to "Re: Iowa Floods"
Board Administrator
Thanks for your concern. The Iowa floods never reached us, but there have also been severe storms during the last few weeks. Larry's 80 year old aunt survived a tornado that devasted her small town of Parkersburg, Iowa and destroyed 400 homes. A few nights later, civil defense sirens went off after midnight in our town as a tornado was a few miles west of us. A Des Moines TV station tracked the storm with live radar reports. Fortunately, it went around us at the last minute. As for the flood waters, they have affected much of the state, including Larry's hometown of Cedar Rapids. Over 25,000 people were forced from their homes as 1300 city blocks were underwater. Water even engulfed an auditorium where Jim Reeves had performed. Flood stage was 12 feet and the water hit 32 feet. The TV networks are slow to catch up with this story. They were preoccupied with eulogizing Tim Russert, an anchorman who died, with multiple tribute shows (narcissistic as they are when something happens to one of them). Meanwhile, there was $735 million damage to Cedar Rapids alone. All of this is bound to have an impact not only on those directly affected but also consumers. 10% of the corn crop is lost, and soybeans too. Corn is a staple in so many foods, and also in ethanol, and the loss of a million acres of corn is going to drive prices sky high.
Click the link to see some dramatic flood photos of Cedar Rapids. The building in the middle of the water (with the steeple, in the aerial view) is the one where Jim Reeves performed. -- Julie
|
Link: Jim Reeves venue engulfed
Post a Response
|
