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U.S. NEWS Monday 17 February 2020

Residents of

Mississippi capital

brace for more flooding

By ROGELIO V. SOLIS and about rebuilding. Both he
REBECCA SANTANA and his wife say they love
FLOWOOD, Miss. (AP) their home, where they
— Residents of Jackson can sit on their back porch
braced Sunday for the and watch deer and other
possibility of catastrophic wildlife
flooding in and around the "It's going to take a while
Mississippi capital as the for us to rebuild, but we are
Pearl River rose precipitous- safe, and we're all OK," Jina
ly after days of torrential Smith said.
rain. On Frazier's lot next door,
Gov. Tate Reeves said the the water was at the bot-
Pearl would continue to rise tom of the driveway but
throughout the day, and had not crept inside the
he warned that the state one-story house where he's
faces a "precarious situa- lived for 23 years.
tion that can turn at any "The water is very close to
moment." my house. It could flood; it Strong currents from the swollen Pearl River floods over a section of the Old Brandon Road Bridge
Officials urged residents to could not flood. It depends in Jackson, Miss., Sunday, Feb. 16, 2020.
pay attention to evacua- on the crest right now," he
tion orders, check on road said. Tuesday and Wednesday "It will be days before we waters start to recede," the
closures before traveling Down the street, a Presby- evening. are out of the woods and governor said. q
and stay out of floodwa- terian church and several
ters, warning that even businesses were flooded.
seemingly placid waters The National Weather Ser-
could mask quickly moving vice said Sunday on its Twit-
currents and pollution. Law ter feed that the river was
enforcement officials went expected to crest Monday
door to door in affected ar- in the Jackson area at 37.5
eas, telling people to evac- feet. That's slightly down
uate, Reeves said. from the 38-foot (11.6- me-
Rescuers performed four ter) crest that had been
assisted evacuations Sat- forecast for Sunday. The
urday, although they said weather service said the
none were needed over- river is currently at 36.42
night. feet in Jackson — its high-
"We expect the river to est level since 1983.
continue to rise over the The Pearl's highest record-
next 24 hours or so, " Reeves ed crest was 43.2 feet on
said at a news conference April 17, 1979. The second-
in Jackson. "We are not out highest level occurred May
of the woods yet." 5, 1983, when the river rose
In the suburb of Flowood, to 39.58 feet.
John and Jina Smith had On Saturday night, officials
packed up as much as released water from the
they could and left their nearby Barnett Reservoir
home as waters rose Thurs- to control its levels. They
day. urged residents in north-
On Sunday, their neigh- eastern Jackson who live in
bor Dale Frazier took them the flood zone downstream
back to their house in from the reservoir to leave
a rowboat, where they immediately. By Sunday
checked on the damage, morning, Reeves said the
then got in their own ca- reservoir's inflow and out-
noe and rowed away. flow had equalized. Reser-
"We've been able to stay in voir officials said in a state-
here when the water gets ment later in the day that its
up," John Smith said. "But as water level had stabilized,
you've watched it over the allowing them to release
years, you know when to less water than expected.
get out. It's time to get out Once the river crests Mon-
this time." day, it will take the water
A foot and a half of water three to four days to go
was inside his house, Smith down significantly. Part of
said. He'd already been the reason is that forecast-
in touch with a contrac- ers expect several inches
tor and insurance agent of rain between midday