As Poplar Bluff looks to close a shelter for flood victims over the weekend, efforts are beginning to turn to recovery work.
A federal declaration of disaster will be needed to access the largest pots of recovery money, including dollars from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Small Business Association, said Butler County EMA Director Robbie Myers.
County EMA directors across Missouri are in the process of turning in damage assessments to the state, which will supply that to the federal government, Myers said.
"We feel confident it will be declared a federal disaster because of the vast amount of damage statewide," he said.
An estimated 250 homes within the city limits of Poplar Bluff and 200 homes in the county may have seen damage from flooding, said Myers, who already has reported this to the state. Myers and other officials will begin further assessments next week to determine the exact number of properties damaged. A telephone number also will be established for residents to report damage, Myers said.
Less than a dozen people spent the night Thursday at a shelter set up at the Black River Coliseum, he said. Numbers had topped a hundred earlier this week.
Those still staying at the shelter include families from the County Road 611 area, which is expected to reopen today.
Officials believe the shelter will be able to close this weekend.
They also are making plans to hold a one day event next week that will bring together multiple agencies, which can provide recovery assistance to families, including government, faith-based and non-profit groups, Myers said. The date and location for this have not been set.
The most heavily affected areas include southern Poplar Bluff, Coon Island and properties along the Black River, Myers said.
The Black River is expected to drop below flood stage by Sunday, after cresting tonight for a second time this week. The river was just under the 16-foot flood stage at 8:15 a.m. today and expected to climb to 17 feet this evening.
Although Clearwater Lake had risen to 569.65 feet as of 7:30 a.m., Myers does not expect new flooding in Butler County.
Water continues to cross the overflow spillway at the Piedmont lake and has damaged a large section of Highway HH, west of the project office.
Water will continue to cross the secondary spillway until the lake level falls below 567 feet.
Wappapello Lake also continues to flow across its secondary spillway, sitting at 396.36 feet as of 8 a.m. A crest today of 397.5 feet has been forecast.
The lake has to fall a little more than 1 1/2 feet, below 394.74 feet, before it stops crossing the auxiliary spillway.
*An earlier article incorrectly identified Highway HH at the Clearwater Lake overflow spillway as Highway 34. The Daily American Republic regrets any inconvenience this may have caused.