The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says warm weather helped them add a half million acre-feet of flood control storage in the Missouri River Mainstem Reservoir System for the runoff season this year.

In response to public concerns about the risk of flooding in 2012 and the fact that many repairs will not be completed prior to the start of the runoff season, the Corps evacuated additional water from the reservoir system.

“The warmer temperatures we’ve seen this winter provided us with a lot of flexibility,” said Jody Farhat, Chief of the Missouri River Water Management Division. “As promised, we have taken advantage of those warmer temperatures to move additional water out of the system and create more flood control storage.”

The total volume of water stored in the reservoir system currently sits at 56.3 million acre feet, 500,000 acre feet below the base of the annual flood control zone.  If temperatures are seasonal during the month of February, the Corps expects to evacuate an additional 100,000 acre feet of water; however warmer than normal temperatures will bring an early start to the runoff season and reservoirs could begin to rise during the month.

Warmer than normal temperatures throughout the basin in the first half of January inhibited ice formation and allowed for above average runoff.

The Corps maintained releases from Gavins Point dam in January at 22,000 cfs.

That’s about 5,000 cfs higher than typical winter releases. 

Warmer temperatures and the lack of river ice below the reservoir system created favorable conditions for maintaining releases at 22,000 cfs through the end of February barring ice-related concerns.

A body was found in a burning truck this morning in Platte City in a rash of car fires.

Platte City first responders were dispatched at 6:50 am to a car fire at 1881 Wilkerson Drive, and to another fire at 2128 Catie Lane at 7:04 am.

Platte City Police Chief Carl Mitchell says in a press release an unidentified male body was found inside a burning truck at 2113 Wilkerson drive.

Police now say nine vehicles sustained fire damage in the same Platte City subdivision.  Several agencies are assisting in the investigation.

A St Joseph man is in custody and one suspect is still at-large after a pursuit that began in Northwest Missouri yesterday.

37 year-old Sean Schmidt of St Joseph was taken into custody in Fremont County Iowa.

Fremont County Sheriffs Deputy Randy Chapman says Schmidt was hiding in tall switch grass for more than four hours near where the vehicle involved in the pursuit was found crashed and on fire.

Chapman says Schmidt will face multiple charges, including unauthorized transportation of anhydrous ammonia, possession of a controlled substance and theft.

Thursdays pursuit started in Missouri when officers were trying to stop a vehicle stolen earlier in the day in Burlington Junction. The suspects drove into Iowa and at one point, a Fremont County deputy tried to shoot the tires of the vehicle out when the suspects drove towards the deputy.

Officers lost track of the vehicle, which was later found crashed and on fire near Highway 275 Between Hamburg and Sydney Iowa without the suspects.

The name of the second suspect, who is still at-large, has not been released.

Authorities have reopened a stretch of interstate 35 near Winston that was shut down for hours when two semis collided head on.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol says the accident happened shortly after 1am Friday just north of Cameron near the Winston exit.

Sergeant Sheldon Lyon says a northbound big rig crossed the median and rammed into another truck in the southbound lanes.

Both rigs caught fire.

Lyon says the driver of the northbound semi who was killed has not yet been positively identified. His passenger was taken to KU Medical Center for treatment.  Michael McQueen, 58, of Jonesboro, Tennessee is in serious condition.

The driver of the other truck was transported to the Cameron Regional Medical Center.  Raymond Emard, 57 of Racine, Wisconsin was treated and released.

Lyon says 600 gallons of diesel fuel spilled into the ditch.   That spill was cleaned up by hazardous materials crews from the Department of Natural Resources and the Region-H Haz Mat team.

Authorities are still trying to track down at least one suspect who fled on foot after a high speed chase in Northwest Missouri and Southwest Iowa.

The Nodaway County Sheriff’s office reported the chase began this morning after a white Hyundai Santa Fe from Burlington Junction in Nodaway County was reported stolen.  Officers tracked the SUV via GPS and tried to stop the vehicle when the suspect fled into Fremont county Iowa.

An Iowa law enforcement officer fired shots at the suspect at one point during the chase.  Officers lost track of the vehicle, which was later found crashed and on fire near 

Highway 275 Between Hamburg and Sydney Iowa without the suspect.  At last word, the search is ongoing.