GILLETTE, Wyo. (AP) - A newly built gas pipeline exploded in a remote area in northeastern Wyoming with enough force to be heard 10 miles away.Nobody was hurt in the blast 20 miles west of Gillette. The explosion happened around 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and left a 50-foot-long trench in the ground.Candy Mooney says the explosion on her ranch felt like an earthquake and roared like a rocket. She watched the scene through binoculars from a nearby hilltop.The blowout shut down the $600 million Bison pipeline owned by TransCanada.Work on the 300-mile pipeline from Gillette to North Dakota was completed in January. The pipeline carries 365 million cubic feet of gas a day out of the Powder River Basin.TransCanada says the blast is being investigated.
http://bismarcktribune.com/news/state-and-regional/pipeline-explodes-in-wyoming-no-one-hurt/article_0c083052-b428-11e0-92dd-001cc4c002e0.html
Governors to discuss Missouri River flood
James River in SD Faces Prolonged Flooding annually and worsened this year due to historic Missouri River flooding at Yankton
Large sinkhole in Council Bluffs linked to flooding
COUNCIL BLUFF, Iowa (AP) — Officials say a large sinkhole in Council Bluffs started as a dip in the road and just kept growing.
KETV-TV in Omaha, Neb., says Thursday the sinkhole now measures 20 feet wide and 10 feet deep. It spans the entire width of a street and has started destroying a driveway. Repairs could run close to $220,000.
City spokesman Don Gross says the collapse of a sewer is to blame, which was cause by the high water table because of flooding along the Missouri River.
The sinkhole is not the first for Council Bluffs, and Gross expects there will be more. He says when the water table is high, water surrounds underground pipes and seeks out cracks. The process eventually creates an underground cavity, leading to a collapse.
Decatur, Nebraska, bridge work must wait till river recedes
Omaha.com | Latest on the Missouri River Flooding - July 22, 2011
River to rise slightly — Rains in the Big and Little Sioux River basins are forecast to cause another rise in Missouri River levels at Omaha, said Dave Pearson, hydrologist at the National Weather Service in Valley. The river is forecast to reach 35.9 feet Friday night into Saturday. Pearson said the river could go a bit higher, but he's not expecting a substantial rise beyond that, despite the rain forecast for the Omaha area. Flood stage at Omaha is 29 feet. Marty Grate of Omaha's Public Works Department said river levels above 35.7 feet are the level at which the city has seen problems with groundwater surfacing in low spots. He said he believes the pumps the city has installed in recent weeks should be able to handle much of that pooling. However, there might be some pooling in a low area of the Minne Lusa neighborhood in North Omaha.
Donate to help levee workers — Council Bluffs Mayor Tom Hanafan said the city is accepting donations to help the 250 to 300 people who are patrolling the city's 28 miles of levees each day. Monetary contributions will be used to purchase water, sports drinks, power bars, bug spray and sunscreen, he said. While people can donate those items directly, money allows the city to purchase whatever is most needed. To donate, email Bluffs employee Karen Smith at ksmith@councilbluffs-ia.gov.
Temporarily permanent? — Some officials say they would like to keep temporary dikes, berms and levees that were hurriedly built to protect people and property from Missouri River floodwater. In Sioux City, Iowa, Woodbury County Emergency Management Director Gary Brown said local governments and private industry would have to spend more money to remove the structures, then would have to pay to erect them again in the future if facing a new flood threat.
Water restrictions — Residents of Bismarck, N.D., are being asked to restrict water use in the wake of Missouri River flooding so the city's water treatment facility can keep up with demand. Keith Demke, the city's utility operations manager, said a high level of sediment in the fast-flowing river is slowing the treatment plant. He is asking residents to limit their lawn watering so the city doesn't have to resort to rationing.
Farhat of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers says the Missouri River could be below flood stage in September
RadiationNetwork.com
Missouri River Dams and River Levels Flood Map
US ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS RELEASES NEW FORECAST SCHEDULE OF RELEASE - 6 MAINSTEM MISSOURI BASIN DAMS
Updated Daily
NOAA Hydrologic - Water Level at Gavins Point Dam, near Ft. Calhoun and Cooper Nuclear Plants
(The following link takes a bit to load all data)
http://water.weather.gov/ahps2/river.php?wfo=oax&wfoid=18705&riverid=203276&view=1%2C1%2C1%2C1%2C1%2C1%2C1%2C1&toggles=10%2C7%2C8%2C2%2C9%2C15%2C6&pt[]=141614&pt[]=144183&pt[]=142396&pt[]=143355&allpoints=143990%2C145585%2C145025%2C145026%2C144876%2C145027%2C143234%2C143184%2C145519%2C145640%2C144217%2C142150%2C142780%2C142853%2C145202%2C141586%2C144582%2C143543%2C144796%2C144098%2C144240%2C141320%2C141614%2C142968%2C144183%2C142574%2C143478%2C142193%2C142760%2C142003%2C142610%2C142396%2C144496%2C147345%2C141899%2C143355%2C142050%2C141570%2C144165%2C143476%2C141703%2C142023%2C144123%2C141863%2C143539%2C143436%2C141917%2C143009%2C142688%2C142640%2C143925%2C143734%2C142729%2C141978%2C143579%2C143348%2C142822&data[]=all&submit=Make+my+River+Page%21#bron1
RESERVOIR CONTROL CENTER REPORTS
Link to daily report:
The Cave's Archive: NW DIVISION OF THE US ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS RESERVOIR CONTROL CENTER DAILY REPORT
Link: THE CAVE'S OVERFLOW - Archive of the Cave's Daily Flood of 2011 Updates
