U. of Iowa Waits for Floodwaters to Recede

The University of Iowa restored electric power to buildings across its campus yesterday—although not to buildings that are still flooded—and got to work on clean-up plans, as The Chronicle’s Katherine Mangan reported.

But university officials said it could take as long as a week for the Iowa River to recede to normal levels, and buildings that have remained dry so far remain vulnerable until it does. Typically, the big worries in flood situations are that debris being swept downstream could break through a temporary levee or that debris could pile up on the upstream side of a bridge, forming a temporary dam and raising water levels behind it.

An article in this morning’s Iowa City Press-Citizen reports that the university has two temporary boilers in place to provide steam for campus needs, and that officials hope they will soon be able to begin pumping water out of the journalism building and a building that houses the English and philosophy departments.

The article also notes that some facilities—particularly on the arts campus, which is still under water—may not be available for fall classes. About 900 residence-hall spaces may also be affected.