“We’re working hard to get that initial level of protection in place,” said Lowell Blankers, who oversees levee repairs in Iowa and Nebraska for the Corps. Even in Hamburg, where repair work is underway, some of the still-flooded job sites can’t be accessed without a boat. The federal government will pay for all of the repairs to levees in the federal system and 80% of the cost to repair levees owned by cities or agricultural groups. Until the levees are repaired, any heavy rain will threaten Missouri River communities with more flooding, said Mike Crecelius, emergency manager for Fremont County, which includes Hamburg. The dragging levee repairs make it hard for people to decide when or if to rebuild their homes and businesses.

Source: National Post May 15, 2019 03:56 UTC