Residents in extreme northwest Missouri are being urged to leave their homes in anticipation of flooding along the Missouri River.
“At 5 o’clock yesterday (Wed) afternoon, Atchison County declared a state of emergency and, as such, we have also recommended that anybody west of Interstate 29 evacuate due to the potential of floodwaters coming in here in the near future,” Atchison County Emergency Management Deputy Director Mark Manchester tells St. Joseph Post.
Manchester says the emergency declaration was issued after the National Weather Service forecast a record crest on the Missouri River in northwest Missouri, higher even than the record crest during the 2011 flood.
Manchester points out the Missouri River in northwest Missouri reached a record crest of 44.8 feet in 2011.
“And, currently, the Weather Service, as of the last update, was predicting 46.3 feet, which would be another foot and a half above that level,” Manchester says. “So, the concern is obviously there that we could see some possibility catastrophic damage.”
The Tarkio River rose to just under 25 feet on Wednesday, forcing the closure of Highway 59 between Tarkio and Fairfax. Manchester says other tributaries of the Missouri River are running bank-full.
Heavy rain in the area has combined with snowpack runoff up north to raise the Missouri River significantly the past few days.
Manchester says many area residents have already been packing, because they have been through this before.
“They knew as they were hearing things that things had the potential to get bad,” according to Manchester. “So, out of an abundance of caution on their part, a lot of them had started to make preparations on their own, but we just felt it would be best to make an official declaration.”
The storm system that brought high winds to the middle of the country yesterday will track through Iowa today. This will lead to strong and gusty winds continuing through the day across the region. Winds may gust to 45 to 50 mph through the day Thursday. That storm system will be exiting the region Friday with a clearing trend to the clouds by the afternoon hours. The rest of the week looks dry with sunny to partly cloudy skies but cooler than normal temperatures. Here’s the 7-day forecast from the National Weather Service:
Today: A chance of rain, mainly after 10 a.m. Cloudy, with a high near 43. Breezy, with a south southwest wind 23 to 25 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 43 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Tonight: A chance of rain before midnight, then a slight chance of snow between midnight and 1 a.m. Cloudy, with a low around 30. Blustery, with a northwest wind 18 to 24 mph, with gusts as high as 36 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Friday: Partly sunny, then gradually becoming sunny, with a high near 46. Northwest wind 13 to 16 mph, with gusts as high as 26 mph.
Friday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 26. Northwest wind 5 to 9 mph becoming light west after midnight.
Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 50. Light west wind increasing to 5 to 9 mph in the afternoon.
Saturday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 28.
Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 53.
Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 30.
Monday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 51.
Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 32.
Tuesday: Partly sunny, with a high near 53.
Tuesday Night: A chance of rain. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 35. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
President-Designate Matthew Wilson. Photo courtesy Missouri Western State University.
Matthew Wilson has been named as Missouri Western State University’s fifth president.
By a 5-0 vote Tuesday, the Board of Governors at Missouri Western named Matthew Wilson, J.D., as Missouri Western’s next president, starting July 1, 2019.
“With a long track record in higher education, including previous experience as a university president, Matt Wilson is prepared to serve Missouri Western well,” said David Liechti, chair of the Board of Governors. “As we got to know him through the interview process and in talking to people he has worked with, we appreciated his strong commitment to student success and his innovative and creative approach to problem-solving. Under his leadership, Missouri Western will continue to be a crucial part of the economic and cultural vitality of our region.”
President-Designate Wilson will be introduced to the campus and community during a formal announcement and press conference at 3 p.m., Monday, March 18, in the Remington Atrium. The announcement is open to the public.
“I am honored that the Governors have put their faith in me and incredibly excited to be joining the Missouri Western family,” President-Designate Wilson said. “I look forward to serving and working closely with outstanding MWSU faculty, students, staff and alumni as well as members of the St. Joseph community. Building on the solid foundation established by Dr. Vartabedian and others, (my wife) Noriko and I are committed to transforming the lives of students, actively engaging with the community and elevating Missouri Western to even greater heights.”
Wilson is currently a professor of law at the University of Akron School of Law after serving as president of the University of Akron from 2016 to 2018. According to a press release from Missouri Western, while president, he helped lead the university to a remarkable two-year budgetary turnaround, eliminating a projected $30 million deficit in 2016-2017 and adding $12 million to reserves. Wilson also participated in fundraising efforts that saw a substantial increase in donations including a $20 million Making a Difference Moving Forward student scholarship campaign and the largest single gift in university history. He also oversaw innovative approaches to student recruitment, retention and internationalization, including:
· the Akron Guarantee Scholarship, which provides students with automatic yearly scholarship upgrades as long as they maintain good academic standing;
· Five-Star Fridays, which concentrates class time Monday through Thursday so that Fridays could be dedicated to practical learning, skills development, career preparation and student success; and
· Esports program that involves more than 1,000 students engaged in competitive video gaming varsity teams, club programs, related academic programs and career pathways.
Prior to serving as president, Wilson was dean of the University of Akron School of Law, where he oversaw a successful $21 million debt-free renovation and fundraising campaign for the law school facilities and helped achieve a 40 percent increase in new student enrollment over two years. He also served as associate dean of the University of Wyoming College of Law and senior associate dean and general counsel of Temple University Japan. He taught a wide variety of law courses at all three schools. He also served as a visiting professor at three universities in Asia and lectured extensively across the country and world.
Before beginning his higher education career, Wilson was a lawyer for Akerman Senterfitt P.A. in Orlando, Florida and general counsel for YPD.com/Advanced Telecommunications Network, Inc., in Tampa, Florida.
Wilson is a member of the Florida State Bar Association, Law & Society Association, Asian Law & Society Association, Australian Network for Japanese Law and NCAA esports working group.
Wilson received a Bachelor of Science in Political Science and a Bachelor of Arts in Asian Studies with a Japanese minor from the University of Utah. He earned his Juris Doctor degree from Temple University Beasley School of Law. He and his wife, Noriko, have four children and three grandchildren.
President-Designate Wilson will succeed Dr. Robert Vartabedian, who will retire July 1 after 11 years as Missouri Western’s president.
Missouri deer hunters donated 259,414 pounds of venison to the state’s Share the Harvest program this past deer season. Photo courtesy Missouri Dept. of Conservation.
The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and the Conservation Federation of Missouri (CFM) are sending out their thanks to the thousands of Missouri deer hunters who donated venison to the state’s Share the Harvest program.
According to a press release from the MDC, 259,414 pounds of venison was donated, including 4,855 whole deer.
The donated deer meat goes to local food banks and food pantries to help feed hungry Missourians all around the state.
Second Harvest Community Food Bank in St. Joseph is one of the food banks that benefits from Share the Harvest. Second Harvest Chief Development Officer Michelle Fagerstone said the program helps hunters donate surplus venison to those in need.
“A hunter simply takes their deer to an approved meat processor and lets the processor know how much venison they wish to donate,” Fagerstone said. “Then the processor packages the meat and either contacts the charitable agency directly or has a sponsoring organization that delivers the donation to that charitable organization.”
Fagerstone said, through the program, Second Harvest received 1,500 pounds of venison in November that they distributed out to their partner agencies.
“We’re always in need of protein for those that are food insecure. So a program like this that brings in pound packages of high protein, high nutritious food is very easy for us to distribute and it generally comes during the winter time when we have a larger call for people who need help because they have outstanding utility bills they have to contend with, they have higher levels of illness going on,” Fagerstone said. “So when we can supplement our budget with donated protein of this level, it really does help us save money and it helps us get that protein out to those in need.”
For more information about the Share the Harvest program, you can call Second Harvest at (816) 364-3663 or go to the MDC’s website.
Gusty winds up to 45 to 50 mph are possible today and Thursday, which may lead to tree and/or structural damage. Additional rainfall amounts of half an inch to three quarters of an inch are expected before rain comes to and end Thursday afternoon. Ongoing river flooding will persist into the weekend time frame. Here’s the 7-day forecast from the National Weather Service:
Today: Showers and thunderstorms, mainly before 3 p.m. High near 61. Breezy, with a south southeast wind 18 to 23 mph increasing to 24 to 29 mph in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 48 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.
Tonight: A slight chance of showers after 4 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 42. Breezy, with a south southeast wind 22 to 24 mph, with gusts as high as 37 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Thursday: A chance of showers, mainly after 7 a.m. Cloudy, with a temperature falling to around 39 by 3 p.m. Breezy, with a south southwest wind 21 to 28 mph becoming west in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 39 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Thursday Night: A slight chance of rain showers, mixing with snow after 11 p.m., then gradually ending. Cloudy, with a low around 29. Blustery, with a northwest wind 17 to 22 mph, with gusts as high as 37 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.
Friday: Mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming sunny, with a high near 43. Northwest wind around 16 mph, with gusts as high as 28 mph.
Friday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 25.
Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 48.
Saturday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 31.
Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 50.
Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 28.
Monday: Sunny, with a high near 50.
Monday Night: A chance of rain and snow showers. Partly cloudy, with a low around 33. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Northwest Missouri and northeast Kansas residents are being urged to take seriously flood warnings issued by the National Weather Service.
Buchanan County Emergency Management Director Bill Brinton worries about how well the federal and farm levee system will hold.
“The problem around this area has always been the farm levee the past few years,” according to Brinton. “And so, we just have to monitor and make sure because this is going to be a pretty major flood stage down near Atchison. So, we just have to keep an eye on it.”
Area motorists are being warned to not cross floodwaters.
The National Weather Service forecasts the Missouri River to reach its official flood stage of 17 feet this morning, rising to nearly 30 feet by early next week. The Platte River is already out of its banks.
Brinton says too many motorists ignore the barricades erected in front of flooded roads. He says it doesn’t take much floodwater to take over control of a vehicle.
“Don’t drive around our barricades and if you see any standing water, please don’t drive off into it, because it is very dangerous and it is pretty simple, especially this time of year when it is so cold and there is ice on the Missouri River, still ice on the Platte River, your survival time is really cut to a minimum,” Brinton says.
Brinton wants motorists to respect floodwaters and not cross them. Brinton says some motorists have ignored barricades erected after flooding along the Platte River covered roadways.
“It happens all the time in the county,” Brinton says. “Where we have our county barricades on the Platte River, on the different roads that are closed, people drive around them all the time.”
A prediction of moderate flooding along the Missouri River has given way to fears of major flooding this weekend.
The National Weather Service elevated its flood forecast this morning from moderate to major severity for the Missouri at St. Joseph as well as at Atchison and Leavenworth, Kansas.
National Weather Service meteorologist Chris Gitro says a strong storm system is moving over the area the next couple of days.
“Compounding the rainfall is the fact that we have quite a bit of snow melt occurring up north, up across Nebraska, the Dakotas, etcetera, and a lot of that water is going to be flowing downstream along the main stem of the Missouri River in the St. Joseph area,” according to Gitro.
The Weather Service expects the Missouri to rise above its flood stage of 17 feet by Wednesday morning with the possibility of the river reaching 28 feet early next week.
Gitro says this flooding could last a while.
“That’s what it’s looking like right now,” Gitro says. “This river flood warning will probably be in effect for a fair amount of time as all that water upstream, up across the Plains, flows downstream and then we continue to deal with the effects of the precipitation that we’re expecting this week as well.”
NWS says lowland flooding upstream and downstream from St. Joseph occurs when the Missouri River rises to 17 feet, its official flood stage. Backwater from the Missouri will flood property along the Nodaway River when the river reaches 19 feet. Riverfront Park in St. Joseph floods at 21 feet with the northwestern residential area of St. Joseph flooding at 24 feet.
NWS expects the Missouri River to crest at just below 26 feet Friday morning, but to rise again to a second create of 28.6 feet early Tuesday afternoon.
Moderate to heavy rainfall is expected beginning Tuesday morning and will continue off and on through Wednesday evening. River flooding is expected throughout the area, while areal flooding is possible across northwest Missouri. Rainfall totals will average around 1 to 1.5″ for most areas. Here’s the 7-day forecast from the National Weather Service:
Today: Showers, mainly after 10 a.m. High near 54. Light southeast wind becoming south 9 to 14 mph in the morning. Winds could gust as high as 23 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch possible.
Tonight: Showers likely before 11 p.m., then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm between 11 p.m. and midnight, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after midnight. Cloudy, with a low around 51. South southeast wind around 14 mph, with gusts as high as 24 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a tenth and quarter of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Wednesday: A chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers and possibly a thunderstorm after 9 a.m. High near 62. Breezy, with a south southeast wind 14 to 22 mph, with gusts as high as 40 mph. Chance of precipitation is 100%. New rainfall amounts between a half and three quarters of an inch possible.
Wednesday Night: Showers and possibly a thunderstorm before 8 p.m., then a slight chance of showers after 2 a.m. Low around 42. Breezy, with a south southeast wind 18 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 33 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch, except higher amounts possible in thunderstorms.
Thursday: A chance of showers, mainly after 8 a.m. Cloudy, with a high near 45. Breezy, with a south southwest wind 20 to 23 mph becoming west northwest in the afternoon. Winds could gust as high as 34 mph. Chance of precipitation is 50%. New precipitation amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Thursday Night: A chance of showers before 8 p.m. Cloudy, with a low around 30. Blustery. Chance of precipitation is 30%.
Friday: Partly sunny, with a high near 43.
Friday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 25.
Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 48.
Saturday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 30.
Sunday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 51.
Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 31.
Weather forecasters expect the Missouri River to begin flooding later this week while floodwaters along the Platte River have forced some road closures.
The National Weather Service in Kansas City has issued a flood warning for the Missouri River; both sides of the state line. NWS forecasters warn the Missouri River will flood at St. Joseph, affecting Doniphan County in Kansas as well as Andrew and Buchanan Counties in Missouri. The Missouri is also expected to flood at Atchison, affecting Atchison County in Kansas and Buchanan and Platte Counties in Missouri. Missouri River flooding is also forecast at Leavenworth, affecting Leavenworth County, Kansas and Platte County, Missouri.
The flood warning issued by the National Weather Service runs from Wednesday evening through Thursday, March 21st. NWS estimates the Missouri could rise to nearly 24.6 feet by early next week. Lowland flooding around the St. Joseph area occurs at 17 feet. Backwater from Missouri River flooding will overflow property along the Nodaway River at Nodaway. Riverfront Park in St. Joseph begins to flood at 21 feet.
Flooding along the Platte River has already closed several roads in Buchanan County. Emergency Management Director Bill Brinton reports the following roads have been closed due to high water:
SE Mitchell
SE Saxton Easton
68th SE
80th SE
Rock Creek SE
SE Kemmer
112th SE
SE 115
SE Horn
SE Chestnut
NE 135
NE 139
SE123rd
Motorists are warned not to drive through flowing water. NWS reports as little as six inches of water could cause you to lose control of your vehicle. Two feet of water is sufficient to carry most vehicles away.
A 19-year-old St. Joseph resident was injured in a rollover crash Monday morning on Interstate 29.
According to Sgt. Chris McBane with the St. Joseph Police Department, at 9:47 a.m., the driver of a pickup truck was driving south on I-29 around the 46 mile marker when he fell asleep at the wheel. The vehicle went off the left side of the road, the driver overcorrected and the vehicle went off the right side of the road and overturned.
The driver was transported to the hospital for treatment of minor injuries.
Residents in extreme northwest Missouri are being urged to leave their homes in anticipation of flooding along the Missouri River.
By BRENT MARTIN
