Deaths mount from U.S. weather

ST. LOUIS — Parts of the Midwest and South braced for more flooding Monday in the wake of weekend storms, tornadoes and flooding that proved fatal.

The outbreak that began Saturday over much of the region included at least four tornadoes in Texas and severe flooding caused by more than a foot of rain in parts of Missouri. The storm even spawned a rare midspring snowstorm in Kansas.

In Missouri, docile creeks swelled to dangerous levels, and river levels jumped after the downpours. The Missouri State Emergency Management Agency counted 143 water rescues statewide but acknowledged that numerous others probably weren’t reported. Hundreds of people were evacuated, a levee was topped in a rural area northwest of St. Louis, and a 57-mile stretch of Interstate 44 was closed.

The Mississippi River was well above flood stage at several points, including Cape Girardeau, Mo., where it is expected to crest later this week within a half-foot of the all-time record of 48.9 feet.

Near Cape Girardeau, residents of tiny Allenville were urged to evacuate — but many did not, even as the town was surrounded by water. The only way in or out was by boat.

“The old-timers, they know how the river reacts,” Cape Girardeau County emergency management Director Richard Knaup said. “They’re old swampers, let me tell you. They’re good country folks. They’d sooner take care of themselves than depend on the government.”

Hundreds of people spent Monday sandbagging Missouri towns along the Meramec River, just 16 months after record flooding along the suburban St. Louis waterway. Eureka police Sgt. David Sindel said 30 to 50 homes in his town are endangered, along with about a dozen businesses as the river is expected to reach within a half-foot of the 2015 record.

“Unfortunately, it’s Mother Nature and I guess there’s not much we can do about it,” Sindel said.

Flash floods in Missouri were blamed in the deaths of a 77-year-old man, an 18-yearold man and a 72-year-old woman, whose husband desperately tried to save her before their car was swept away.