MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- The Memphis District, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), has initiated Phase I floodfight activities in the Cairo, Reelfoot-Obion, and Missouri areas due to high river stages. This is in conjunction with ongoing Phase I activities on the White River. Current National Weather Service forecasts call for the Mississippi River to crest around 53 feet on the Cairo gage around Feb. 26.
During a floodfight, USACE personnel monitor all federal flood control works including levees, flood walls and pumping stations. Material assistance may be provided with close coordination with State and Local authorities. These may include portable pumps to remove water from flooded areas, plastic sheeting to cover levees and help minimize levee slides and erosion, and sandbags.
Citizens are strongly encouraged to stay in touch with their local authorities and emergency management officials for updates on conditions in their areas. USACE will deploy additional personnel and resources as required to ensure the safety of life and property.
The USACE Division headquarters in Vicksburg, Mississippi coordinates all floodfight activities in the Mississippi Valley. The USACE Emergency Operations Center in Memphis directs all floodfight activities in its area of responsibility in conjunction with the affected states, levee districts and other local interest groups.
The Federal flood protection works in the Mississippi Valley protect many thousands of homes, millions of lives and vast tracts of fertile cropland. The Memphis District’s flood risk reduction system has prevented more than $4.3 billion in flood damages and protected more than five million acres of cropland in the last decade alone.
Release no. 20-005