Miss. Delta counties prepare for flooding

Published 12:30 pm Wednesday, May 4, 2011

ROLLING FORK (AP) — Mississippi authorities say they’re confident the main levees along the Mississippi River will withstand high water levels expected in the coming weeks, but they warn Yazoo backwater levees could be overtopped by as much as a foot.

More than 1,000 people packed a National Guard armory Wednesday in Rolling Fork for a flood briefing.

Peter Nimrod, chief engineer with the Mississippi Levee Board, says people in low areas should secure their property and prepare to leave. Levees will be closed as of Saturday night to everyone except law enforcement.

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Sharkey County supervisor Bill Newsome says government documents and medical records in Issaquena and Sharkey counties are being moved to higher ground.

Officials are trying to get a water ambulance. Responders are trying to identify people who may have trouble evacuating.