Flood in New Madrid County, Missouri

Flooding from excessive rainfall the previous night caused widespread damage across the county, especially in Lilbourn. An estimated 75 to 110 residents of Lilbourn were displaced. Water in the houses ranged up to three feet deep. Streets were flooded, and houses were sandbagged. Access to some neighborhoods was mainly by boat. Gas leaks were reported in Lilbourn and Parma. In Portageville, at least a couple dozen homes were flooded, and businesses along Highway 162 near the Interstate 55 overpass had water in them. New Madrid County was declared a state disaster area by the governor. Countywide, a total of 127 occupied structures were damaged, and 147 others were affected. Of the 127 damaged structures, damage to 32 was deemed major. Eleven of the structures were businesses. Crop damage was extensive due to the large amount of acreage that was submerged for days. An estimated 25 to 50 percent of the county's cotton yield was lost. The soybean crop was damaged to a lesser degree. Crop damage was well over 10 million dollars.

Record flooding occurred on the Mississippi River. At the New Madrid river gage, the flood crest of 48.35 feet on the night of May 5 broke the previous record (set in 1937) by a few inches. The levee protecting the city of New Madrid held the water back, but seepwater caused a number of problems. Many city streets were damaged in New Madrid, including the formation of sinkholes once the water receded. One home was damaged by the seepwater, with water about an inch deep. Some basements were flooded with seepwater. Outside the levee system, the sewer treatment plant for New Madrid was in danger of being flooded. Floodfighting efforts were effective in saving the plant. Interstate 55 was reduced to one lane in both directions at the St. Johns Bayou due to sandbagging operations.

Moderate flooding continued on the Mississippi River from February. At the New Madrid river gage, the river crested at 42.99 feet on March 2. This crest was one of the five highest since the Flood of 1937, but it was several feet lower than the Flood of 2011. Flood stage is 34 feet. The impacts were mainly flooded agricultural fields, river access roads, and a couple of state highways outside the levee system. Since the crop season was not underway, the extensive field flooding caused little crop damage.