Donations to National Guard

If donations of food and other supplies made to the National Guard unit stationed at the Washington Armory remain after they finish their duties, it will be given to flood victims . Ann Moore from the 134th family readiness group says that they don't know when that will be, but eventually if there are things left over, they will in turn make that donation to local people affected.

Water in Columbus Junction

Columbus Junction City Clerk Julie Heindel says that drinking water will be passed out again to residents today from 3 to 5 p.m. at Columbus School; they may be on the other side of the school today. Heindel says that residents are also able to bring in their own large containers to be filled.

Eating food from flooded gardens

Below is from Patrick O’Malley, ISU Extension Horticulturist:

If the flooding is from primarily pooled rainwater they should be alright following previously sent precautions. However if it is from river, creek, or other source that may be contain raw sewage such as untreated release from city wastewater plants, septic systems, or livestock facilities, the general recommendation is to avoid using those garden areas for 90 days.

More roads open

Washington County Secondary Roads announces these roads are now open to traffic:

* Locust Street in the city of Coppock
* Nutmeg Ave and Poplar Blvd southeast of Kalona

Want the full list of county roads closed and other road information? County roads website

Blood drive moved due to flooding

Jenny Vinzant, Associate Donor Resource Consultant from Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center has this related announcement:

Columbus Junction is scheduled to host a drive from 1:30 - 6:30 p.m. tomorrow (June 18th) at the Legion Hall. However, the flooding has caused the Legion to be utilized as a sandbagging station and we were left to find an alternate location. The Columbus City Masonic Lodge has graciously allowed MVRBC to use the building in order to continue blood collections.

Drive Specifics:

- Date: Wednesday, June 18th

- Hours: 1:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

- Location: Columbus City Masonic Lodge - Corner of Columbus and Market Streets - Columbus City, IA 52737

- Goal: 40 units of blood

*As the flood waters have challenged our coordination and planning of this drive, we are relying on walk-in donors to fill our time slots and meet our goal; no need to call to schedule an appointment.

Thanks,

Jenny Vinzant

Associate Donor Resource Consultant

Mississippi Valley Regional Blood Center

Solicitation for photos

KCII would like to see your photos from local flooding, especially Louisa, Keokuk, and Washington Counties. E-mail them to news@kciiradio.com; please include the photographer's name, the location, and the date it was taken.

Flooding footage

Video shot of a wide Iowa River Sunday morning east of the Riverside Casino



(Ben Stanton/KCII)

Methodist Church in Washington taking donations

New Creation Church in Cedar Rapids is housing people displaced due to flooding. The Washington United Methodist Church is collecting donations for them.

Here is a message from Pastor Julie Poulsen

I-80 open

Iowa DOT shows I-80 Between Iowa City and the Quad Cities is now open again.

Boat ban lifted

Washington County Sheriff Jerry Dunbar reports the previously enacted "boat ban" on rivers has now been lifted.

State resources

A special website is setup for information from the state about flooding.

http://www.flood2008.iowa.gov/

Message from Mayor Cicalo

This is a portion of a message is from Mayor of Washington, Rick Cicalo.

(Cicalo will also talk about the effort to move Colonial Manor residents to Washington on KCII's Washington Page at 7:30 a.m. and 12:55 p.m. on KCII AM 1380 FM 106.1)


The tragedy of flooding that affects nearby Columbus Junction and Riverside, Coralville, Iowa City and Cedar Rapids if foremost on our minds. Many Washington Citizens have responded by lending assistance. The city of Washington provides potable water. The city’s fire department has connected a hose to nearby Tyson Foods as the facility has water treatment ability to aide Columbus Junction residents and we lent assistance evacuate nursing home residents to a Washington facility by mobilizing Washington County Minibus.

There is much to say about this last weekend, we were working hard, but how do you compare our efforts to those who lose their homes and livelihoods? We do it by working just as hard the next day and the next, to assist, rebuild to see our neighboring communities thriving once again. In that, I wish to thank all of you who have volunteered your time. Mayor Wilson, of Columbus Junction also wanted you to know how much he appreciated your effort. I wish to also note and thank the drivers and staff of W.C. Minibus who were eager to answer the call for assistance.

Mayor Rick Cicalo

Mayor Wilson gives update on KCII

Mayor of Columbus Junction Dan Wilson is set to give an update on KCII radio: AM 1380, FM 106.1 during the noon hour today (Monday).

The program is expected to air at around 12:45 p.m.

Some soldiers moved to Highland School

Many National Guard Soldiers have now moved from the Washington armory near the Walmart to Highland Schools to be stationed.

National Guard soldiers stationed at the Washington Armory are doing well in general for donations of food and supplies. But, Specialist Rhonda Radosevich says that after a long day of flood response work, some soldiers would appreciate recreational donations: footballs, Frisbees, playing cards, etc.

Washington County road update

The following road has re-opened to traffic:

250th Street northeast of Ainsworth

Find the full list of roads remaining closed: county roads website

Also, Highway 22 east of the Riverside Casino is closed (see photo in a previous post).

Death reported in Wapello

Louisa County Sheriff's office reports the body of 35 year old Scott Jarad McCulley of Grandview was found after he had been reported missing; he was found Sunday afternoon on a search using boats. An autopsy is planned for today.

Special program from ISU Extension Wednesday

Iowa State University Extension is holding two more Emergency Crop Production Programs on Wednesday, June 18.

ISU Extension Linn County office will host a program 9:30-11:30 a.m. at the office located at 3279 7th Ave., Suite 140, Marion. The other program will be hosted at the ISU Extension Washington County office, 2223 250 St., Washington, from 1:30-3:30 p.m.

Each program will feature individuals with a wide range of expertise. The topics include:

• Economic Issues including crop insurance government payment issues
• Livestock Issues
• Crop Issues

The program is free and open to the public. Pre-registration is not required.

Contacts :

James Fawcett , Field Specialist, (319) 337-2145, fawcett@iastate.edu

ISU Extension info

This is a list of resources from ISU Extension office.

http://www.extension.iastate.edu/news/2008/jun/071201.htm

Columbus Junction water

Columbus Junction and Columbus City have water after an attempt to connect hoses to the Tyson Foods facility for a supply.

However, a BOIL ORDER is in effect for both cities. Also, bottled water is available at Columbus High School.

Fredonia residents can return

Residents of Fredonia evacuated on Saturday may return today (Monday) at 8 a.m.