Some insight into the severe flooding that pummeled Northwest Iowa in late June is now given, in a new report from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.
Some areas of Siouxland received more than half a year's worth of rain during the final week of June, leading to significant flooding conditions.
According to the latest Water Summary Update released Thursday, the town of Lake Park, Iowa, received 18.46 inches of rainfall during June. That town is located by the Little Sioux River near the Iowa Great Lakes, which flooded downstream is such places as Spencer, Sioux Rapids, and Correctionville.
June’s preliminary statewide rainfall average was 5.22 inches.
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds made another round of stops Wednesday at communities hit by record-breaking flooding. She visited Rock Valley, Sioux Rapids, and Spencer to see what is needed most.
“We can't meet every single need; that's just a reality. But we're going to do the best that we can to work with people and figure out how we can tap into the resources that are available and see how we can best use those resources,” Reynolds said.
Reynolds says many residents weren’t in a flood plain area and didn’t have insurance or were underinsured.
In Sioux City, Big Sioux River flooding impacted the Riverside neighborhood.
Federal Emergency Management Agency Disaster Survivor Assistance teams began visiting the Riverside neighborhood on Thursday, to help residents apply for assistance.
These teams will be going door to door in the impacted areas of Riverside over the next few days, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. The teams will help survivors apply with FEMA and address immediate and emerging needs.
FEMA staff members can be recognized by their federal photo identification and a blue FEMA vest. Residents are encouraged to request credentials before sharing any information.
In another new element offered to Riverside people starting Thursday, Sioux City Parks and Recreation will be offering Riverside Pool as a facility for hot showers to residents affected by the flooding. The showering facilities will be free of charge at the pool from 1 to 9 p.m. daily.
*Additionally, a North Central Iowa man has been found guilty of killing an Algona police officer.
Judge Nancy Whittenburg read the verdict Thursday at the Dickinson County Courthouse in Spirit Lake.
The jury deliberated for about an hour in the trial of 43-year-old Kyle Ricke. Police video showed Ricke shot Kevin Cram eight times without warning in September 2023.
Sentencing has been set for August 21 back in Kossuth County. The trial had been moved to Dickinson County due to concerns about finding an impartial jury. The mandatory sentence for first-degree murder in Iowa is life in prison without parole.
*In other news, in Storm Lake, Iowa, a broad project to move city-owned facilities to more energy efficient operations will mean closing the library to public access from July 17 to 26.
A Storm Lake press release said the conversion to LED lighting will provide brighter and more reader-friendly lighting to enhance the experience of library patrons. It will also save on energy costs.
The City of Storm Lake is in the process of converting lighting to LED also at city hall, fire and police stations, the airport, water and wastewater plants and the public works building. They are utilizing a MidAmerican Energy incentives program to substantially reduce costs.
While the Storm Lake Library is closed for this period, library staff will be available through normal hours. Patrons may call to request materials for a curbside pickup.
*Sioux City will be the site for the third annual Missing & Murdered Indigenous Relatives Pow Wow this weekend.
The event will be held at Riverside Park in Sioux City on July 12 to 14. The event is sponsored by Red Sky Nation, as a way to create a culturally-specific safe space to learn about this public health crisis.
Community activist Trisha Rivers is encouraging people to take part, to see how native people have been harmed by so many missing and murdered relatives. The event will center on healing justice, since native people have some of the highest rates of violence, sexual assault, poverty, and substance abuse.
The Pow Wow is free to the public, and will have Pow Wow singers and dancers, plus lots of information tables, arts and craft vendors, and food vendors.
