NEW MADRID, Mo. (AP) - The Army Corps of Engineers is facing criticism in southeast Missouri for a plan to rebuild Birds Point levee to 51 feet - 11 feet below its height when it was intentionally breached this spring.
The corps blasted three holes in the levee at the height of Mississippi River flooding in early May to lower the river level and help save nearby Cairo, Ill. Cairo was spared, but 130,000 acres of prime Missouri farmland were flooded.
At a hearing Monday in New Madrid, the Southeast Missourian (http://bit.ly/r754E0 ) reports that several residents expressed concern about the corps' plan to rebuild the levee to the lower height.
Furg Hunter, a supervisor for the levee district, says a 51-foot levee means farmers face a 50-50 chance of losing everything - again.
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Information from: Southeast Missourian, http://www.semissourian.com