As Missouri River nears crest in Blair, locals assess impact

BLAIR, Neb. (WOWT) - The Missouri River in Blair was close to its peak levels Wednesday.

It’s expected to crest by less than a foot more Thursday.

Despite that, Washington County Emergency Manager Dan Douglas is confident the levees will hold.

“They held in ’19; they held in ’11,” Douglas said. “It’s nothing you can plan for, but we don’t expect there to be any issues with the levees running through the county.”

He added that Highway 30, which is the main thoroughfare in town, will stay open. He also doesn’t expect to evacuate homes, which for one resident of the Longview Mobile Home Court, is a relief.

“You’re always concerned that you may have to pack up whatever you might have to get out in a hurry,” Juanita Gray said. “Knowing that we don’t have to do that, that’s a big relief.”

Not everyone is as fortunate.

Campgrounds along the river, like the Cottonwood Cove Marina and RV Resort, had to be evacuated.

One of the co-owners told 6 News around 35 percent of the property is underwater. And while he doesn’t think this will be as destructive as the 2019 flood, it’s still frustrating.

“It’s a disruption,” Mike Lupardus said. “It costs money. When you start to look at the storage capacity—the flood storage capacity in the system upriver—it sure makes you wonder why and how.”

Due to the Missouri’s higher water levels, its drainage ways and tributaries have been flowing backwards. Water has found its way into low areas in the land, including Jeff Kempcke’s farm fields.

He estimates at least 250 acres of his land were underwater Wednesday, saying the corn may survive, but the soybeans are goners.

“Due to the lateness of the year, when the water does go off, it’s too late to do any replanting,” Kempcke said. “So now, you’ll battle the debris and the weeds until it freezes up.”

Omaha will see its peak river levels Friday. In Plattsmouth, the Missouri will crest by the weekend.

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