By BRENT MARTIN

St. Joseph Post

Highway crews are working to restore both lanes of Highway 59 in southern Buchanan County, but I-29 into Iowa will likely be closed for quite some time.

Missouri Department of Transportation Area Engineer Adam Watson says crews created a temporary berm along Highway 59 to force floodwaters off one lane to re-open the route into Atchison, Kansas.

“We wouldn’t open the road with water being over it. We don’t like for motorists not to be able to see what they’re driving through. We don’t like the potential for damage underneath the water we can’t see,” Watson tells St. Joseph Post. “Typically, even when its raining really hard and the road is flooding, we don’t like for motorists to drive through running water or drive through a road covered with water.”

Watson says MoDOT hopes to open both lanes soon, perhaps even as early as today, but worries that spring rains could create renewed flooding later.

Interstate 29 across the state line into Iowa will likely stay closed well into May, perhaps even into June.

Watson says I-29 suffered extensive damage in Iowa during the Missouri River flooding. Once floodwaters recede, repairs will need to be made to re-open the interstate.

Watson says MoDOT is allowing local traffic to travel I-29 in northern Missouri.

“What we don’t want is through traffic or traffic intending to go further north into the Midwest to use I-29, because there is no capacity to accept traffic into Iowa,” Watson says. “There is just nothing over across the (state) line.”

I-29 remains closed to through traffic at Highway 71 north of St. Joseph.

MoDOT is advising traffic wishing to travel north on I-29 to drive east to Interstate 35 and take it to I-80, back across to I-29.

 

By BRENT MARTIN

St. Joseph Post

U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt says the flooding in northwest Missouri this year should prompt the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to re-think how it manages the Missouri River.

The Missouri and its tributaries overflowed their banks and swamped vast amounts of farmland and a number of cities in Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, and Kansas.

Blunt says the adjustments to the master manual which guides management of the Missouri made in 2004 didn’t go far enough to emphasize flood protection. He wishes the Corps had kept more water in the six upstream reservoirs this winter.

“But, they didn’t. And, again, I think there were some extreme circumstances here that we haven’t seen before, but still you would think that we would be able to be anticipating what’s going to happen here in the next weeks as the snow begins to melt and the spring rains come,” Blunt tells the St. Joseph Post. “Neither of these should be big surprises.”

Blunt says the destruction this year seems similar to that of 2011 with a big exception. A dam in northern Nebraska failed, spilling a huge amount of water into the Platte River system which fed the Missouri River system downstream. The Corps, responding to massive flooding in Nebraska, attempted to ease flooding there by opening the gates at the Gavins Point Dam at Yankton, South Dakota, sending huge amounts of water into an already swollen Missouri River.

Blunt is quick to point out that Army Corps of Engineers officials in Omaha and Kansas City simply follow the master manual and shouldn’t be blamed. He says top Corps officials will need to take a long, hard look at its Missouri River master manual in wake of this flood and place more emphasis on flood control, navigation, and drinking water with less concern for environmental protection.

The Corps’ top priority now, according to Blunt, should be to repair the 50+ levees broken over a 350-mile stretch of the Missouri River without interference from Washington, D.C.

Congress should approve disaster assistance for communities and farmers impacted by the flood, according to Blunt. Blunt says the help will be included in the next disaster aid package approved by Congress.

“Which qualifies our state along with Kansas and Iowa and Nebraska for the parts of that appropriated money that they would qualify for,” Blunt says. “And, as we know more later, we may have to put more money in those categories to fully take care of what happened in our four states. But they’ll be included in the next bill we pass or we won’t pass a next bill.”

Blunt believes Congress will also approve agricultural disaster aid through a separate package.

There is a sense of urgency, according to Blunt, as communities and farmland have become vulnerable to northern snowmelt and spring rains entering the system.

“Just the normal spring water, plus the normal spring flooding, if it doesn’t get worse than that, will be harder to deal with this year than it would be if we hadn’t had this unique Platte River-related disaster,” according to Blunt.

By ST. JOSEPH POST STAFF

It might just be one lane, but U.S. Highway 59 in southern Buchanan County has re-opened.

Highway 59 to the Amelia Earhart Bridge into Atchison, Kansas had been closed to traffic since floodwaters from the Missouri River overtopped a levee and swamped the highway March 21^st.

The Missouri Department of Transportation says floodwaters still cover one lane, so temporary traffic signals have been set up to allow one lane to be open for traffic.

For updated information on flooding and restoration, click here for the MoDOT web page.

Story courtesy KXCV/KRNW

This week marks the 18th anniversary of the disappearance of Skidmore, Missouri, resident Branson Perry.

Perry was 20-years-old at the time of his disappearance.

Nodaway County Sheriff Randy Strong said his department has begun another push in trying to solve the case. Strong tells KXCV/KRNW they have a few leads from previous investigations.

“It appears to be drug related,” Strong said. “There are certain individuals whose names keep popping up in it and I think it’s time that we put all this together and come up with what we can and present it to the prosecutor for them to look at and decide, can we go forward if we don’t find a body or do we continue to look and those are some tough decisions that we’re going to have to make.”

Strong said he feels there are people in the area that have direct knowledge of Perry’s disappearance.

“I think we are pretty familiar with the individuals that are responsible, that there’s some other individuals that probably have information that could come forward and help us bring this case back to life,” Strong said.

Strong urges anyone with knowledge of Branson Perry’s disappearance on April 11th, 2001, to contact the Nodaway County Sheriff’s Department. Click here for more information.

The project to enhance Potter Hall at Missouri Western State University has received a $1 million gift.

The announcement of the gift was made during the Missouri Western Foundation’s annual Donor Appreciation Reception Tuesday.

According to a news release, the gift was from Drew H. Brown of St. Joseph to support the addition of a visual arts annex. When it’s constructed, the addition will be known as the Drew H. Brown Arts Annex. 

“Drew Brown has been one of Missouri Western State University’s most active supporters for many years,” said Dr. Robert Vartabedian, Missouri Western’s president. “He has provided leadership to many areas of campus, giving generously of his time and wise counsel, and I am very grateful that he has added to his legacy with such a generous gift.”

Brown served a long and distinguished career in the U.S. Army, retiring as a lieutenant colonel in 1992, and is currently a self-employed investment manager. He served on the Missouri Western State University Foundation Board of Directors and is currently chair of the Missouri Western Arts Society. He has also served as a mentor and volunteer through the University’s Center for Multicultural Education, mentoring students of color and providing guidance and encouragement to them in their pursuit of a college education. Last fall, he received the Herb ’35 and Peggy Iffert Award for Outstanding Service to the University from the Missouri Western Alumni Association.

“I love this university,” Brown said. “Missouri Western brings so much to the St. Joseph community, and I welcome that, whether it’s arts offerings, the expertise of its faculty or, most importantly, workforce development. We all want a better life, and most students come to Missouri Western because they see it as the key to that better life.”

According to the news release, Brown’s gift is part of Missouri Western’s Centennial Capital Campaign, launched in January 2015, the University’s centennial year. Brown’s gift brings the campaign total to $30,448,759 in outright and deferred pledges and gifts, exceeding the initial celebration goal of $20 million by more than 50 percent.

The Centennial Capital Campaign funded significant improvements to Craig Field at Spratt Memorial Stadium and the Looney Arena, endowed a first-of-its-kind population health management degree program, and grew the Foundation’s endowment. The five-year campaign will end in January 2020.

By SARAH THOMACK
St. Joseph Post

A free walking program in St. Joseph kicks off this week with a few changes.

St. Joe Fit will begin the walking season at 5:30 pm on Thursday. Julie Noel with St. Joseph Parks, Recreation and Civic Facilities said walkers will meet at the St. Joseph REC Center located at 2701 Southwest Parkway.

“It’s so much fun,” Noel said. “You meet new people… you really get a chance to walk along almost every single urban trail we have here in St. Joe and some trails people don’t even realize exist until they get to walk on it.”

Noel said this year they’re making a change to the schedule. The trail walks will run from April 11th until May 30th. During the summer, walkers are encouraged to utilize the free or reduced price fitness classes and wellness nutrition classes available for St. Joe Fit participants.

“Those who want to walk in the summer between June 5th and August 30th can walk for free on Thursdays at the REC Center anytime. The trail walks will start back up September the 5th and go through October the 17th,” Noel said. “The feedback that we received from a survey we provided to participants indicated that it’s really hot during the summer months and we were seeing a lot of numbers fall off so we thought maybe we’d try something different.”

The St. Joe Fit program also includes some options to the trail walks this year so people can choose a length that fits with their schedule or fitness level. There will be three options: a 1-1.5 mile walk, 2.5-4 miles or 4-5 mile walk.

Noel adds the recent flooding should not affect the trail walks scheduled this spring and they will adjust the locations, if needed.

For more information, contact Julie Noel at (816) 271-5516 or visit the St. Joe Fit Facebook page. To register online, click here.

For more information go to stjoe229.com.