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• Rising floodwaters created by torrential, tornado-spawning thunderstorms caused Iowa's Cedar River to crest at over 30 feet on June 13, 2008, flooding downtown Cedar Rapids and forcing the evacuation of Mercy Medical Center's 176 patients.

• Fast Facts

  1. Population of Cedar Rapids: 124,000The Associated Press: Rising Water Forces Evacuation of Iowa Hospital (June 13, 2008)
  2. Floodwaters threatened to cut power to hospital
  3. Expected river crest: 38 feetThe New York Times: Waters in Flooded City in Iowa Likely to Crest Soon (June 12, 2008)
  4. Crest at height of last major flood event in 1993: 19.2 feetThe New York Times: Waters in Flooded City in Iowa Likely to Crest Soon (June 12, 2008)
  5. Record Cedar River crest: 20 feet
  6. Year previous record set: 1851
  7. No. of city blocks under water: 438
  8. Steam and electricity services cut to downtown indefinitely
  9. Downtown under evacuation orders
  10. No. of homes evacuated: 4,000The Associated Press: Rising Water Forces Evacuation of Iowa Hospital (June 13, 2008)
  11. Height of water downtown: Five to six feet
  12. One levee already broken; others may fail
  13. Most homes and businesses lack flood insurance

• 500-Year Flood Event in Iowa

  To put the current flooding disaster in perspective, the last major flood event in Iowa caused the Cedar River to crest at 19.27 feet. In the 2008 event, the river is expected to crest at 38 feet. The previous record crest of the Cedar River was 20 feet, set in 1851.The New York Times: Waters in Flooded City in Iowa Likely to Crest Soon (June 12, 2008) The entire downtown of Cedar Rapids is under mandatory evacuation orders and municipal services such as steam and electricity have been cut.

• Related Mahalo Pages

  500 Year Flood in Iowa | Des Moines Flood Evacuations | Fond Du Lac Flood

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