Missouri River levee fails near Iowa-Mo. border

HAMBURG, Iowa (AP) — The National Weather Service says a Missouri River levee has failed near the Iowa-Missouri border, prompting a flash flood warning for the area around Hamburg, Iowa.

Weather service hydrologist Dave Pearson says the breach shortly before 11 a.m. today created a 30-foot-wide hole in the levee that had three partial breaches last week.

Water flowing through the hole must cross several miles of rural land to reach the town of Hamburg. Pearson says the floodwater is expected to reach Interstate 29 and the town of about 1,100 people sometime Tuesday.

Hamburg is protected by a secondary levee built last week, but it’s not clear yet whether that will hold back the water. The southern half of the town was evacuated last week after the partial levee breaches.