While recent warm weather was a pleasant surprise for the Quad Cities community, it also proved to have devastating consequences. The melting snow upstream created a domino effect, flooding any cities bordering the Mississippi River.
In March, the National Weather Service warned the Quad Cities of an inevitable flood in the near future. They predicted the river would surpass the major flood stage of 18 feet, and there was going to be a 50% chance of the flood exceeding the 1993 record of 22.5 feet.
The Mississippi River has lived up to and even exceeded these expectations. As of April 8, the river sat at 20.5 feet, which is about 12 feet above normal levels, and has remained above the major flood stage. Streets are closed, sporting events are cancelled, and there is still more rain on the way.
This past winter, towns were bombarded with massive snowstorms. Although most winter precipitation seems to have slowed down, its effects are more prevalent than ever; cities downriver are flooding because of this melting snow.
Highway 22 has been closed and will remain so until the water level drops. Not only are residents unable to drive through downtown Davenport, but many businesses are being forced to stay closed until further accommodations can be made.
For example, Davenport’s minor league baseball team, the River Bandits are unable to play on their home field. Their stadium, Modern Woodmen Park, is located right off of Highway 22 and adjacent to the Centennial bridge.
The facility is equipped to handle flooding of this sort, so the field is completely dry. However, fans cannot physically reach the stadium, so home games have been moved to Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids.
Attendance at baseball games is the least of Ada Duncan’s worries. Because she lives alongside the river, the Pleasant Valley senior has to take extra precautions just to make it to school. “The water made it up to my driveway making it quite difficult to leave my house,” she said. At the river’s peak height, Duncan had to park on the highway near her house and walk to get home.
Duncan was lucky enough to still stay in her house, but others, like junior Claire Tomlinson, were not so fortunate. “At one point we had to stay in a hotel for 5 days, and now we have to kayak or boat back and forth to our house,” Tomlinson said.
The stress of balancing school, work, and extracurriculars are already heavy on PV students’ shoulders, but Tomlinson said the flood has created additional challenges for her. “Getting where I need to be on time has been the biggest struggle,” she said.
This flood has already affected the day-to-day lives of members of the community and put functioning businesses on pause, but it has not run its full course. With the impending rainfall, the river will spike once again and locals will need even more help; luckily, volunteering opportunities are just one click away.
