A flash flood warning was issued for Atchison County, Missouri Sunday morning after officials reported a levee along the Missouri River was over-topping along several places.

Over-topping was reported Sunday morning west of the small town of Watson.  It was later reported near the Brownville Bridge.

Three major highways near Rock Port have been closed: I-29 north of town, Route 275 north, and US-136 west of town.

MoDOT has been suggesting motorist also use Highway 71 as another detour.

Atchison County’s Emergency management officials are asking those who have not already evacuated in the western part of the county to do so now.

Also Sunday, a floodwater overtopped a levee across the river in Brownville, Nebraska.

According to the Army Corps of Engineers, water started running over  an approximately 30-foot stretch on the southern portion of Levee R-548 late Sunday afternoon. The local sponsor is onsite and is placing sandbags to cut off the flow.

The earthen levee, located south of Brownville in Nemaha County,  is in the Federal Program and is operated and maintained by the non-federal sponsor.  It was constructed by the Corps in the late 1940s.

For a map of the levee locations, click the Corps logo.

Overtopping occurs when the water is at a higher elevation than the height of a levee, and is not the same thing as a breach or levee failure.   Overtopping will allow water to enter the protected area and pond to a depth associated with the amount of water overtopping the levee.

The Corps is in close coordination with the State Emergency Management agencies, officials from the State of Missouri and Nebraska and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Region to ensure the safety of all in these areas.

These overtoppings follow weeks of high flows and increasing releases from the main stem dams in Montana and the Dakotas. The Corps continues to aggressively monitor and evaluate the inundation areas.