A powerful spring cold snap brings more rain and snow to a soggy U.S. heartland Wednesday, putting more pressure on riverside communities from the upper Midwest to the Deep South.
The residents of Grafton, Illinois, north of St. Louis, will see the worst of the floodwaters through Friday as the Mississippi River peaks at more than 11 feet above flood stage, the National Weather Service says.
Many along the river's edge decided to evacuate.
But Jerry Eller thought he would wait it out.
"I've got water coming up through cracks in the floor, so I have about 3,000 gallons an hour of pumps running down the basement keeping water out, and that seems to be keeping it down to about an inch," Eller told CNN affiliate KPLR.
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Heavy flooding in the Indonesian capital this week has killed 12 people, driven thousands from their homes and paralyzed the sprawling city - and officials are warning that more water is on its way.
Caused by unusually strong monsoon rains, the flood waters - often carrying trash and human waste - have inundated the city's central business district, closed schools and offices, and entered the presidential palace.
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Days of heavy rain have led to flooding in southwestern England and parts of Wales and at least one fatality, British authorities said Sunday.
The UK Environment Agency posted a severe flood alert for the town of Helston, in the southwestern county of Cornwall, where the River Cober was rising over its banks, and warned towns across England and Wales to prepare for more high water.
In Exeter, in neighboring Devon, a woman was killed when a tree fell on her Saturday night, the Devon and Cornwall Police Service reported.
On Twitter, Prime Minister David Cameron called the scenes of flooding "shocking" and said his government would make sure "everything is being done to help."
The region has seen four days of non-stop rainfall that has capped months of heavy precipitation, including the wettest April-June period on record. More than 225 areas stretching from Cornwall through the Midlands region to the northeastern coast were under flood warnings Sunday afternoon as the latest system moved through, the Environment Agency said.
The U.S. death toll from Superstorm Sandy has jumped again.
It is now at least 113. The New York City Office of Chief Medical Examiner raised that city's death toll today to 43.
A 77 year-old man from the Far Rockaway neighborhood in Queens fell down a flight of stairs November 6 and later died at a hospital, the examiner's office said. Also, a 66 year-old man was found in his Staten Island home on Friday - 11 days after the storm. He had drowned.
The death toll for the city includes one police officer; another 78 were injured in the line of duty, New York police said.
[Updated at 8:46 p.m.] A wintry mix of heavy rain, wind and snow hitting the weary East Coast a week after Superstorm Sandy prompted a cancellation of hundreds of flights in the New York and Philadelphia regions.
More than 780 flights have been canceled in the New York City area's three major airports, said Chris Valens, a spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. Still, the airports were open, "and we expect that they will stay open," Valens said.
Construction work has started again at ground zero, site of the World Trade Center attacks on 9/11, which was flooded by Superstorm Sandy.
About 750 workers are back at it, now that more than 95% of the storm surge at the 16-acre site has been pumped out, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced.
Editor's note: Six days after Sandy slammed into the U.S. East Coast, the storm's U.S. death toll continues to rise - reaching 110 on Sunday, in addition to two killed by the storm in Canada and 67 in the Caribbean. Click here to read more about the recovery effort.
[Updated at 9:47 p.m.] "The operation to secure the boom of the tower crane on West 57th Street is complete," said Tony Sciafani, spokesman for New York's Department of Buildings. Six days ago, high winds from Sandy left it dangling and spurred fears it could fall. But now, "all buildings in the vicinity can be reoccupied," said Sciafini.
This photo shows the crane as it appeared Saturday, when efforts to secure it were already well underway:
Editor's note: The aftermath of Superstorm Sandy focused Thursday on a search for the missing and restoration of power. The storm's overall death toll stood at 161, including at least 92 people in the United States, two in Canada and 67 in the Caribbean.
[Updated at 4:30 a.m.] The New York Police Department said early Friday morning that the death toll from the storm had gone up four more to 41 in New York City.
Editor's note: Two days after Superstorm Sandy roared into the Northeast, ravaged cities are working on cleaning up from floods, wind and fire. Millions remain without power. The storm has left at least 122 dead from Haiti to Canada. Here is the full story and below is the latest news as we learn it.
Are you there? Send your stories and photos to CNN iReport but stay safe.
[Updated 1:40 a.m.] About 4.9 million customers remain without power in 15 states and the District of Columbia today, a CNN tally shows. That number dropped by about 600,000 in six hours. FULL POST
Superstorm Sandy will go down in history. But the storm itself isn’t “history” yet.
It may no longer be packing a punch, but it is getting some jabs in.
Superstorm Sandy has left millions without power and a trail of devastation in its wake. Watch CNN.com Live for all the latest developments on the storm.
Today's programming highlights...
Ongoing coverage - Sandy briefings and radar
9:35 am ET - Ryan in Wisconsin - GOP vice presidential candidate Rep. Paul Ryan resumes campaigning with a tour of his home state, starting with a stop in Eau Claire. He'll also speak in Green Bay at 12:45 pm ET and Racine at 3:45 pm ET.
Superstorm Sandy left wreckage in its wake "beyond anything I thought I'd ever see," New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie said at a news conference today.
"The level of devastation at the Jersey Shore is unthinkable," he said.
Superstorm Sandy smashed into the U.S. East Coast on Monday night, triggering floods, fires and devastation. At least 29 people are known to have died in the United States and one in Canada, adding to the storm’s earlier toll of 67 after it hit the Caribbean.
Millions were without power, and floods have hit homes and the New York subway system. Relief groups are working to make sure everyone affected by the storm is cared for, and you can help.
CNN meteorologist Dave Hennen has gathered the data, crunched the figures and come up with this staggering list of factoids about the massive storm that is Hurricane Sandy:
– Strongest ever: Based on pressure, Sandy is likely to be the strongest storm ever to make landfall north of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, for as long as records have been kept. The benchmark storm, the 1938 Long Island Express Hurricane, contained a low pressure reading of 946 millibars. Sandy currently has a minimum pressure of 943 millibars. Generally speaking, the lower the pressure, the stronger the storm. Stormsurf.com explains.
Editor's Note: The danger cannot be overstated. Hurricane Sandy has already claimed at least 67 lives - including 51 in Haiti. In the United States, schools are closed, businesses shuttered and mass transit suspended. Residents are being told to hunker down - and wait . Here is the full story.
Here are the latest developments:
[Update 4:49 a.m. ET] Anna Kate Twitty, a spokeswoman for the Red Cross, was just on CNN and said the organization has multiple shelters across seven states where evacuees can find "a safe place, a warm meal and emotional support." To find a shelter, go to redcross.org, call 1-800-Red-Cross or download the free Red Cross hurricane app for iphone and android users. FULL POST
Flooding in Cameroon's Far North Region has killed nearly 30 people and affected more than 26,000 others, officials said Monday.
More than 4,000 people in the Logone and Shari division were displaced, and more than 22,000 people in the region of Maga, Mayo-Danay division, also have been affected.
Communication Minister Issa Tchiroma Bakary described the flooding as "a calamity," and he called for urgent action to save lives, livestock and property. Dana FM, a local radio station, said the death toll will grow as bodies are collected and identified. For the past few weeks, there has been no sign of the flood easing.
The floodwaters have submerged areas like Benoue, Faro, Louti and Mayo. Homes, crops and barns have been destroyed and herds of livestock killed. Heavy rainfall that has lasted nearly a month has fractured the Lagdo Dam, causing the Benoe River to flood nearby villages.
FULL STORY[Updated 4:15 a.m. Friday] Isaac, now a tropical depression is working its way up the Mississippi River Valley, bringing heavy rain and the threat of flash floods to the area. A tornado watch remains in effect for much of Mississippi. Parts of Arkansas and Mississippi are under flash flood watches and warnings, according to the National Weather Service.
[Updated 10:35 p.m. ET] And finally ...
Sunset on Dauphin Island Parkway. Good bye #Hurricane Isaac. http://t.co/uFDprm7C
—
Art Faulkner (@artfAEMA) August 31, 2012[Updated 10:21 p.m. ET] The folks who catch the shrimp we enjoy on our tables are a tough lot, a breed apart. Not a few of them rode out Isaac on their boats.
[Updated 10:09 p.m. ET] Electric utility Entergy says it will bring its Waterford 3 nuclear plant back online over the coming days. The plant, 25 miles from New Orleans, was shut down Tuesday as a precaution as Tropical Storm Isaac approached. About 41 percent of all homes in Entergy's Louisiana service area were without power as of late afternoon.
[Update 10:01 p.m. ET] Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport received its first post-Isaac incoming flight this evening, from Aspen, Colorado, Mayor Mitch Landrieu's office says.
[Updated 9:54 p.m. ET] The Salvation Army says it has provided more than 8,000 meals, 7,000 drinks, 6,000 snacks, and emotional and spiritual care to nearly 600 individuals along the Gulf Coast during the storm period.
[Updated 9:44 p.m. ET] New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees tweeted a message of support for the folks back home while the Saints prepared for a preseason game against the Tennessee Titans in Nashville:
We are about to take the field in Tennessee, but our hearts are with New Orleans and its residents. May God watch over us all
—
Drew Brees (@drewbrees) August 30, 2012[Updated 8:39 p.m.] Storm surge and high winds pushed several pleasure boats out of Mississippi's Pass Christian Harbor, leaving vessels high and dry on streets and in parking lots, CNN affiliate WLOX reports.
"I'd say in one word, it's a mess," Pass Christian Mayor Chipper McDermott told WLOX. "We had 215 boats in the harbor, and all but six or seven got out. As you can see, three are in the road, and that is a big problem."
Boat owners were under orders to remove their vessels from the harbor before the storm struck. McDermott wants to have a word with those who didn't.
"I'm personally taking it upon myself to talk with these boat owners," he said. "I'm personally doing it."
Refresh this page for the latest updates or read the full CNN story here.
[Updated 10:28 p.m. ET]
[Updated 10:20 p.m. ET] Water that overtopped levees was trapped in Plaquemines Parish with nowhere to drain. Officials were considering intentionally breaching a levee downstream to allow some of the floodwater to flow back out of the inundated area, Gov. Bobby Jindal said.
Parish President Billy Nungesser said parish officials will go out at low tide to check the back levee - a second line of defense - at the town of Braithwaite and determine where to punch holes in it. It will be Saturday, at the earliest, before crews can cut the levee open, letting water flow out into the marsh.
[Updated 10 p.m. ET]
[Updated 9:52 a.m. ET] New Orleans officials said there had been 12 incidents of looting. Police said arrests were made in each case, but didn't specify how many people were involved.
[Updated 9:48 p.m. ET] Lake Pontchartrain's water levels are "beginning to stabilize," St. Tammany Parish officials said, according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune. Water had spilled out from the lake and flooded low-lying areas of the parish.
Rescues continue in areas around the vast Louisiana lake, including Lewisburg, Guste Island, Lacombe and Slidell, the newspaper's website reported.
[Updated 9:29 p.m. ET] Joey Amann gathered family and friends into his home in Hancock County, Mississippi, to ride out the storm, he told CNN affiliate WALA.
"You know, we just figured we'd be safer in numbers. Since our house is eight feet off the ground, we figured we'd be safer there but the water just kept coming," Amann said.
"It was scary. I mean, I've never seen the water raise this fast on this road and I've been here all my life. It just came out of nowhere."
The group ended up being rescued by emergency personnel in boats.
Amann told the station he lost his home to Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
"Thirty-six years I've lived here, and it's just devastating," he said. "Seven years ago, we were going through the same thing. No one thought it would be this bad, but it's worse than we anticipated."
Dozens of people have died in Pakistan and India's northern Rajasthan state amid flash floods and landslides caused by heavy monsoon rains, officials said Thursday.
At least 21 deaths are confirmed in Pakistan, said Maj. Iftikhar Ahmed Taj of the National Disaster Management Authority.
Hundreds of homes have been damaged in the flooding, which has hit parts of Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, and Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, he said.
Rescue workers are seeking to deal with a major landslide in the Kashmiri city of Muzaffarabad, according to the disaster agency.
Roads are blocked, some 390 houses have been damaged and an unknown number of people are dead and injured, the agency said. Some families trapped by the landslide have been given emergency food and water supplies.
Elsewhere in Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, seven people were killed in Bagh by a flash flood and a landslide, while more than 100 houses were damaged in Koti, the disaster agency said.
More rainfall is on the way in Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, some isolated places in northeast Balochistan, and the country's capital, Islamabad, according to the agency.
Clean-up also was under way Thursday in neighboring India, where heavy rain in Rajasthan left 20 dead, the Rajasthan state department told CNN. Ten died in the capital, Jaipur, it said.
FULL STORY
Flash flooding in Duluth, Minnesota, has forced residents to evacuate, left homes underwater, destroyed roads and even led to the drownings of at least eight animals at a zoo.
Between 5 and 9 inches of rain fell between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, sending what looked like raging rivers through Duluth's streets, according to the National Weather Service. Another 2 or 3 inches of rain was still likely to fall.
Duluth residents, who are more used to having snow dumped on them rather than flash floods, said the damage was worse than anything they had ever seen.
"This flooding has been crazy. We have not experienced anything like this in our community," iReporter Kayla Keigley, who said she works as a health care preparedness coordinator, told CNN. "Roads are destroyed. Neighborhoods are underwater. I am in shock and I work in the field of preparedness - this is something I work to 'deal with' daily. Our community is in disbelief."
Workers at the Lake Superior Zoo were in disbelief, too, when they learned at least eight animals drowned there. The toll might still rise, because the workers hadn't yet been able to check all enclosures.
"Sadly the zoo experienced the loss of several animals, among them many of the barnyard residents," Susan Wolniakowski, the zoo's director of guest services, said in a news release. "Due to flooding, the zoo’s polar bear Berlin was able to exit her exhibit. She was darted by the zoo’s vet and is safe in quarantine. At no time did any dangerous animal leave the perimeter fence."
The zoo said the staff still was assessing the situation.
“Obviously, our entire staff is devastated,” the zoo’s director of animal management, Peter Pruett, said.
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