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Closed no longer: MoDOT re-opens I-29 north of St. Joseph after Iowa makes partial flood repairs

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By BRENT MARTIN

St. Joseph Post

An empty I-29 after MoDOT closed it to traffic.

A surprise, and a pleasant one for northwest Missouri travelers, as the Missouri Department of Transportation re-opened Interstate 29 this morning after Iowa made sufficient repairs to allow for traffic there much earlier than expected.

Earlier projections pegged the re-opening closer to the Memorial Day weekend.

Missouri Department of Transportation Assistant Maintenance and Traffic Engineer Jennifer Sardigal says Iowa moved quicker than expected to make I-29 functional again.

“I-29 did re-open about 10 o’clock this morning,” Sardigal tells St. Joseph Post. “Iowa got their roadway open to head-to-head traffic on I-29. They did not open (Highway) 2, but they are open at (Highway) 34, so they are allowing traffic into Iowa. So we, as promised, followed along and opened I-29 so that everybody can get from St. Joe to Iowa.”

Missouri River flooding overflowed and heavily damaged I-29 in southwest Iowa, forcing the Iowa Department of Transportation to close the interstate south of the Council Bluffs/Omaha metro area. That action has a ripple effect, causing MoDOT to close the interstate to traffic just north of St. Joseph at Highway 71.

Four-lane interstate traffic will be squeezed into two lanes over a portion of I-29 in southwest Iowa while further repairs are being made. Wide loads will not be permitted to travel that intersection and will have to find an alternative route.

Sardigal acknowledges the re-opening came sooner than expected.

“It’s been in the works for a few days,” according to Sardigal. “They (IDOT) gave out a contract deadline of Memorial Day, but the contractor was able to get done sooner. So, as soon as the contractor was able to, we opened the road.”

The closing snarled traffic throughout the region, especially in eastern Kansas as trucks and cars traveled west across Highway 36 to take Route 75 or 77 into Nebraska. I-29 carries about 12,000 cars and trucks daily through northwest Missouri.

MoDOT had directed northbound traffic to take I-35 to I-80 in Iowa, then across to I-29. Highway 71 north of St. Joseph also served as an alternative route, but truck drivers and motorists appeared to prefer traveling Highway 36 into Kansas, then north on Route 75 to Nebraska, taking either Highway 2 into Lincoln or continuing on 75 to Omaha.

Though I-29 has re-opened, Highway 2 into Nebraska City remains closed.

Sardigal says MoDOT closed I-29 just north of St. Joseph at Highway 71 as the best alternative under the circumstances.

“We didn’t want to drop a bunch of traffic onto low-volume routes for safety reasons and we didn’t want to drop off a bunch of traffic into Iowa when they had nowhere to go.”

But, now, they do.

Local coaches will bus tables for Backpack Buddies fundraiser

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Backpack Buddies Coaches Challenge. Photo courtesy Second Harvest Community Food Bank.

By SARAH THOMACK
St. Joseph Post

Local coaches will be taking a break from sports to bus tables for tips Wednesday night.

The Backpack Buddies Coaches Challenge is a fundraiser for Second Harvest Community Food Bank’s Backpack Buddies program.

According to Second Harvest, each child enrolled in the supplemental weekend feeding program, receives a healthy breakfast, lunch and snack each weekend during the school year.

St. Joseph area high school and Missouri Western coaches will bus tables and collect donations at five participating McDonald’s locations for the fundraiser.

Missouri Western State University Head Football Coach Matt Williamson says he was a part of the Coaches Challenge last year.

“It’s very rewarding when you do that for the community… but it’s really great for those kids because they need that,” Williamson said. “You want to make sure a kid has a chance to have success and if you give them a good head start, like we do with the Backpack Buddy program, it just starts off the school year right and gives the kids confidence and encouragement to make sure they finish strong.”

Williamson said there are usually volunteers inside and outside with donation buckets. 

Coaches will be collecting donations from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday at the following McDonald’s locations:

Midtown- Central

North Belt- Lafayette

Lake Contrary- Benton

South Belt- Leblond

Truck Stop- Missouri Western

 

For more information, visit the Second Harvest Community Food Bank’s Facebook page.

Interstate 29 reopens Wednesday morning in northwest Missouri

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An empty I-29 on March 19, 2019, after MoDOT closed the interstate due to heavy damage to it just across the state line in Iowa.

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – Interstate 29 reopened Wednesday to all traffic between Exit 56 and the Iowa state line.

The roadway has been closed since late March because of flooding.

According to the Missouri Department of Transportation, while floodwaters had receded and debris was cleared from the Missouri portion of I-29, Iowa had significant damage to I-29 and the routes that extend east and west from I-29 in western Iowa.

The closure in Missouri continued, with the exception of local traffic accessing their homes and businesses, until the Iowa Department of Transportation was able to reopen their section of I-29 Wednesday morning. Approximately eight miles north of the Missouri border, traffic moves head-to-head and a 12-foot width restriction in place. MoDOT says motorists should expect delays. Over-dimension loads must use an alternate route.

More than 12,000 vehicles utilize I-29 through Northwest Missouri daily to access locations in Iowa and points north. Due to the lack of detour routes in Northwest Missouri that could handle that many cars, trucks and heavy commercial vehicles, all through traffic was rerouted onto I-35 or U.S. Route 71.

Many other routes throughout the region remain flooded, both in Missouri and Iowa, according to a MoDOT news release. Travelers do not have access to several roads west of I-29 in Atchison and Holt counties due to flooding and damage. These include U.S. Routes 159 and 136, commonly referred to as the Rulo and Brownville Missouri River Crossings, which are heavily damaged and remain closed. While repairs have begun on U.S. Route 159, water remains over the road in many areas, including U.S. Route 136. This continued flooding, combined with changing weather conditions, could delay recovery and repair efforts.

For updated information regarding route restoration and flooding, visit the Northwest Missouri Flooding webpage at https://www.modot.org/2019-northwest-missouri-flooding. The website provides an interactive map on flooded and damaged roadways in Missouri, links to neighboring states’ information, condition and restoration photographs and several other resources.

For more information about these closures, visit modot.org, or call 1-888-ASK-MODOT (1-888-275-6636).

Temps near 72 with continuing chance of rain and storms

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The threat of severe thunderstorms for the rest of day has shifted south thanks to the line of storms that went through the region this morning. However, we will maintain a concern of scattered showers and thunderstorms through the day, particularly after 5 p.m. in areas along the Kansas-Missouri border. Brief torrential rain, which may result is flooding, small hail, and lightning are the only concerns for even the strongest of the late afternoon to evening storms. Dry, but cool temperatures –in the 50s– will prevail Thursday with a breezy north wind. Here’s the 7-day forecast from the National Weather Service:

Today: Showers and thunderstorms likely, mainly before 2 p.m. Cloudy, with a high near 72. South wind 11 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.

Tonight: Showers and thunderstorms before 1 a.m., then a chance of showers. Low around 44. Light and variable wind becoming north northwest 10 to 15 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 22 mph. Chance of precipitation is 80%. New rainfall amounts between a quarter and half of an inch possible.

Thursday: A slight chance of showers before 7 a.m. Cloudy, with a high near 52. North northwest wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 22 mph. Chance of precipitation is 10%.

Thursday Night: Cloudy during the early evening, then gradual clearing, with a low around 41. North northwest wind 6 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 21 mph.

Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 63. North wind 5 to 7 mph.

Friday Night: A slight chance of showers after 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 46. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Saturday: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 66.

Saturday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 48.

Sunday: Sunny, with a high near 70.

Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 47.

Monday: Sunny, with a high near 75.

Monday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 56.

Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 78.

For some northwest Missouri farmers, this flood could wipe out a crop…and an income

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By BRENT MARTIN

St. Joseph Post

Some farmers in northwest Missouri face the very real possibility of not planting a crop this year due to the flood.

Congressman Sam Graves, who lives near Tarkio, says he has heard from many farmers who still have fields under water and no prospect of getting a crop in the ground this year.

“You have no income. There will be no income for folks that are farming along the river,” Graves tells Barry Birr, host of the KFEQ Hotline. “They can’t put a crop in. So, okay, you erase a year’s worth of income. What do you do? You want to talk about stress and frustration, that’s what you hear.”

The prospect of no crop and, thus, no income this year grows more realistic as rain comes down and floodwaters fail to recede. Fields ruined by the flood are not likely to drain and dry out in time for planting.

Graves says older farmers likely have banked enough savings to survive the year.

“But, a lot of younger farmers, they aren’t in that position and the fact of the matter is the machinery payments continue, the farm payments continue, the house payment continues regardless of whether or not you have income or not and that puts people in a real bind when you’re dealing with that, so yeah, it could put people under,” according to Graves.

A disaster aid package continues to work its way through Congress. Whether it will be enough to offset the losses from this year’s flood remains to be seen. Graves does note that the package likely will contain some money to compensate for the loss of stored grain, ruined when floodwaters surrounded, then collapsed grain bins in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, and Iowa.

Even as floodwaters recede, lawsuit against Corps of Engineers moves forward

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By BRENT MARTIN

St. Joseph Post

Attorney Seth Wright (l) speaks with Congressman Sam Graves about the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ management of the Missouri River.

Even as northwest Missouri begins a long recovery from the latest Missouri River flooding, a lawsuit filed against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers moves forward.

Federal Judge Nancy Firestone ruled last year the Corps’ management of the Missouri led to some of the flooding since 2007. Firestone made an exception for the flood of 2011, which she said grew beyond the ability of the Corps of manage.

One of the attorneys involved, Seth Wright of St. Joseph, says the 372 farmers, landowners, and business owners represented in the lawsuit deserve compensation for losses sustained during persistent flooding.

“So, there’s been great loss to farmland, land reclamation, crop loss, all along the river and it has happened in 2007, 2008, 2010, ’11, ’13, ’14, ’15, ‘16’, ’17, ’18, and now ’19,” Wright tells St. Joseph Post. “And the floods are escalating. We’re seeing catastrophic flooding, 500-year floods, that are occurring now on a more frequent basis.”

The lawsuit, Ideker Farms, Inc. et al. v. United States of America, contends the Corps of Engineers violated their 5th Amendment rights by taking private property without just compensation.

“So, the government, what we have said, has come in, they have perpetrated a flow-age easement across our client’s property through the flooding that they need to compensate us for,” Wright says.

The lawsuit strikes at the heart of how the Corps manages the Missouri River.

It claims that since the Corps changed the Master Manual which guides its management in 2004, the river is more prone to flooding. The lawsuit charges the Corps made construction of habitat for fish and wildlife a higher priority than flood prevention. It contends the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service directed the Corps to protect the endangered species the least tern, the piping plover, and the pallid sturgeon.

The case has moved to its second phase in which the court will determine damages. The plaintiffs in the lawsuit claim there have been 100 flood events along the Missouri River since 2007. One damage estimate pegged the losses at $300 million.

Click here for more on the lawsuit from the Polsinelli law firm.

 

USDA offers low-interest loans for agricultural producers in Missouri impacted by natural disasters

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(FSA) Missouri agricultural producers who lost property due to recent natural disasters may be eligible for U.S. Department of Agriculture physical loss loans. The Farm Service Agency offers these low-interest loans to agricultural producers in Andrew, Atchison, Buchanan, Clay and Holt counties, the primary damaged area, who incurred losses caused by extreme flooding beginning on March 9, 2019.

Producers in the contiguous Missouri counties of Clinton, DeKalb, Gentry, Jackson, Nodaway, Platte, and Ray, along with Fremont and Page counties in Iowa; Atchison, Doniphan, and Wyandotte counties in Kansas; and Nemaha, Otoe, and Richardson counties in Nebraska, are also eligible to apply for emergency loans.

Physical loss loans can help producers repair or replace damaged or destroyed physical property essential to the success of the agricultural operation, including livestock losses. Examples of property commonly affected include essential farm buildings, fixtures to real estate, equipment, livestock, perennial crops, fruit and nut bearing trees, and harvested or stored crops and hay. Approval is limited to applicants who suffered severe physical losses only, including the loss of buildings and livestock. Applications are due Dec. 24, 2019.

For more information on FSA disaster assistance programs or to find a local USDA Service Center visit https://www.farmers.gov/recover

2 drivers hospitalized after Livingston County crash

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LIVINGSTON COUNTY — Two people were injured in an accident just after 6:30p.m. Tuesday in Livingston County.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol reported a 2008 Pontiac Grand Prix driven by Jazamen R. Campbell, 18, Chillicothe, was northbound Livingston 251 two miles east of Chillicothe. The driver failed to yield at Route V. A westbound 2015 Toyota Rav 4 driven by Mona J. Cunningham, 58, Chillicothe, struck the Pontiac on the passenger side.

Chillicothe EMS transported Campbell and Cunningham to Hedrick Medical Center. Both drivers were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the MSHP.

Obituaries May 7th

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James Michael “Mike” Shannon
1939 – 2019

James Michael “Mike” Shannon, 79, of Atchison KS died Thursday, May 2, 2019 at his home.

Mike was born on August 11, 1939 in Kansas City, MO the son of Gail L. and Mable (Torkelson) Shannon. He graduated from Atchison County Community High School in 1957. Mike served in the United States Air Force. Mike studied computer programming at the NEKS –VoTechnical School. He worked as a master scheduler for Rockwell International, Atchison Casting and Bradken, retiring after 35 years in 1994. Mike was a member of the Trinity Lutheran Church where he served in the Stephen’s Ministry and helped computerize the membership roster. He was also a member of the VFW Post # 1175, Adult Bible Class, and the Riverbend Promenaders. Mike enjoyed fishing, gardening, woodworking, genealogy, square dancing and especially spending time with his grandchildren. He was married to Nancy Scott-Bissell on Dec. 21, 1991. She survives of the home.

Additional survivors include four children, including Brian (Jennifer) Bissell, Lancaster, KS, two brothers; Raymond (Wanda) Shannon, Iola, KS and Gary (June) Shannon, Olympia, WA, a sister Dianna (Larry) Sextro, Horton, KS and numerous grandchildren including; Erika (Reagen) Kinzer, Nathan Bissell, and Madison Bissell, and several great grandchildren including; Carlee, Bo, and Conner Kinzer.

Funeral services will be 11:00 AM on Saturday, May 11, 2019 at the Trinity Lutheran Church with Rev. Robert Ziegler officiating. Burial will follow in the Lancaster Cemetery. The family will receive friends from 10:00 to 11:00 am Saturday at the church. Memorial contributions are suggested to the American Cancer Society or the Trinity Lutheran School Grant Fund and may be send in care of the funeral home. Words of sympathy and remembrances may be left online at www.beckerdyer.com.

Jack Edmond Albright
1928 – 2019

Chaplain Jack Edmond Albright, 91 went to his heavenly home on Wednesday, May 1, 2019 at his home in Atchison, KS.

Jack was born on April 16, 1928 in Childress, TX the son of Joseph Earl and Estol Augusta (Monroe) Albright. Jack earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Wayland University of Plainview, TX and Master of Divinity degree from Southwestern Seminary, Ft. Worth, TX. While attending seminary, he worked at General Dynamics, Ft. Worth as a photographer for eight years. He was certified as a Chaplain in Topeka, KS; ministered in Texas, New Mexico and here in Kansas. He was certified as a Neuro-Linguistic therapist in 1983. He has been ordained for 67 years as of August 2018. Jack was the chaplain/minister for the Atchison Youth Center for twelve years, before retiring in 1992. He continued to minister in twenty-nine different local churches filling in when asked to preach and teach God’s Word. He was instrumental in getting the Ministerial Alliance of Atchison organized and was President. Jack and his wife Marilyn have led a grief counseling and support group called “Growing Through Loss and Grief, for the community through Becker-Dyer-Stanton Funeral Home for over 25 years. He was a published author of several books, newspaper articles and columns in the Atchison Globe for over 25 years. He wrote poetry, as well as did drawings, and was very interested in photography. He also enjoyed woodworking, silversmithing and making jewelry, as well as playing the guitar and listening to music.

Jack was married to Marilyn Sue (Megli) Busche on July 4, 1987 at the First Christian Church. She survives of the home. Additional survivors include children; Gregory N. (Naida) Albright, Cambria, CA; Kathy Lynn Merrifield, Shawnee, KS; Arthur F. (Marti) Busche, Irving, TX and Arlana Morgan, Gretna, LA and a sister, Sylvia R. Steen, Plainview, TX; eight grandchildren; Anya Albright; Jill (Joey) Chenier; Jimi Morgan; Lauren (Jim) Murillo; Arthur Busche IV (Ashley LaFarlett); Sydney (Adam) Bellinder and Luci and Joey Martinez; eight great-grandchildren; Caleigh, Bella, Angelique and Baby on the Way Murillo; Conner and Avery Chenier; Grayson Busche and Theo Bellinder.

His parents and a brother Eugene A. Albright preceded him in death.

Memorial services will be at 11:00 AM on Saturday, May 18, 2019 at the First Christian Church with Rev. Matt Broxterman and Rev. Russ Cooper officiating. Visitation will be from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM. Inurnment will immediately follow the memorial service at the Columbarium at Sunset Memory Gardens, Atchison. Memorial donations may be made to the Atchison County Food Pantry at FCC or FCC Church Choirs or St. Croix Hospice, sent in care of the Becker-Dyer-Stanton Funeral Home who is handling the arrangements. Words of sympathy and remembrances may be left online at www.beckerdyer.com.

Warren Rhyner
1927 – 2019

Warren Rhyner, 92, St. Joseph, Missouri, passed away Monday, May 6, 2019.

He was born February 13, 1927 in Marshfield, Wisconsin. Warren married Helen Montegna February 6, 1960. She survives of the home. He was a founding member of Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church. Former member of St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church, St. Joseph Country Club and Elks Club #40, B.P.O.E. Warren enjoyed golf and had a great love for animals.

He was preceded in death by his brother, Donald Rhyner; parents; and step-father, Whitey.

Additional survivors include children, Beth Ann Moon (Peter), Greenwich, Connecticut, Randy Rhyner (Karen), Leawood, Kansas, Rick Rhyner (Susan), Leawood, Kansas, Rob Rhyner (Marta), Chicago, Illinois, Rene’ Rhyner (Eric), Denver, Colorado, Ryan Rhyner (Julie), Omaha, Nebraska; and 12 grandchildren.

Mass of Christian Burial 10:00 A.M. Thursday, Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church. Parish Rosary 6:00 P.M. Wednesday, Meierhoffer Funeral Home & Crematory. The family will gather with friends 6:30 to 8:00 P.M. Wednesday, Meierhoffer Funeral Home & Crematory. Online guest book and obituary at www.meierhoffer.com.

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