Hawkeye Campus in Peril

( This view is on Dubuque Street on the way out of Iowa City towards I80 interstate.)

I am unable to generate the words to deftly describe how devastating the current flood situation is throughout Eastern Iowa. I spent my 5 memorable years of my life residing in this community and it was essential in my development as a human being.

I met some of the my best life long friends in the Iowa City area and I will love this place until I kick it. Please reference the picture in right hand corner of this blog for any doubts to my Hawkeye tailgating credentials.

Here is google map of where the flooding is taking place in Iowa City.


View Larger Map

Here is a good video of the situation in Johnson county.



There was some good news on Sunday for Iowa City as the Coralville reservoir,located upstream from the city, reached its high point and the water level is slowly decreasing. This does not necessarily mean the Iowa river has crested as other flooded streams run into the river and there is still high chance of of levees breaking because of the massive water flow pressure.(I just knocked on wood 3 times!)

At least 16 University of Iowa campus buildings have taken in water and another seven are at severe risk. The arts/theater related departments are taking the brunt of the flood with Hancher Auditorium and the newly built Museum of Art submerged deep in water.

Two million square feet of campus is affected by the flood, and half of that space has already taken on water, officials said. For perspective, the entire campus is 16 million square feet, meaning one-eighth of campus is at risk for flooding.

There is a steep incline starting about one block to the east of the Iowa Memorial Union so not all buildings in these maps are in danger but those close to the river are likely in peril.

For anyone who has ever attended, visited or most likely partied in Iowa City, these pictures will blow you away.

The above picture is the Art Museum.

Hancher Auditorium and water is estimated to be above the main performance stage

A look over the Iowa River on campus

An aerial picture of the Iowa River, the make shift sandbags wall, and the student union called IMU on the right

A view towards the east side of the river and campus.

This is an entrance into the IMU and this picture really is shocking. I actually studied at this place and maybe spent more time here than the bars up the street. Well, maybe not more but enough to get a degree!

Danforth Chappel is in serious trouble.

If the water gets above this sandbag wall, the main library might be ruined.

Volunteers trying to save Lindquist Center

The Iowa City water plant has been shut down.

Burlington Street is slowly covered in water. I can not figure out what this dude in the background is doing or wearing on his head. Weird.

The above pictures are the University's softball fields.

All these trees on both sides of the river could be under water by Monday evening.

The University of Iowa has set up a flood relief fund and you can make a donation at this website.

I will have more information on Cedar Rapids and Coralville flood catashpories and Iowa City updates.

The Rez reaches high point in water
Hancher is ruined and more UI buildings in trouble
Iowans battling deadly flood waters

The Iowa student newspaper, the Daily Iowan, posted some impressive picture galleries. \
Here is the DI's latest video report.
Thanks to Gazette Online and the Des Moines Register for the pictures/links.

Hawkeye Blues Part 2

NEW UPDATE DOWN BELOW!!



The big building above is an University of Iowa dorm called Mayflower. Here is what the dorm normally looks like.




If you have ever been to Iowa City, Dubuque Street is the main road into the city and it is an exit from I-80 interstate. Dubuque Street is completely under water and the major Mayflower dorm looks screwed.

They expect the Iowa river to raise up 5 more feet by Saturday and I am getting text messages on Thursday night of people being rescued from houses in Coralville, Iowa, which is basically a suburb of Iowa City.

A Coralville levee just broke and flood waters are now filling the main business district, labeled the Coralville strip. It should be completely under water by mid day on Friday.

Here is a video segment from the Daily Iowan

The pictures were from the Iowa City Press Citizen and their website headline reads "Evacuate!"
I located a University Iowa webcam and as the waters continue to rise rapidly over the next 48 hours, you should be able to watch it at this link.

U of I has set up a flood watch blog.

Cedar Rapids, a town of 125K that is about 30 minutes North of Iowa City is completely Fd and their downtown is under water. The flood waters are predicted to crest at 32 feet in CR which is 12 feet over the 1993 all time record and a staggering 20 feet over what is considered a flood. The pictures are breathtaking.













These pictures below are from Thursday evening and if you compare the building which I believe is the court house, you can see how much the water is still rising.





More shocking pictures of the Cedar Rapids flood can be found at this link.

These waters will funnel into the Mississippi and more record disaster is upcoming down river. I am still furious that we do not have 100-200K troops OCCUPYING Iowa right now helping out with prevention and protection of these communities.

Homeland Security? what a complete joke and budget albatross. There only use is having press conferences with the FBI to tell us how they just saved us from some big scary attack so they can get some cheap splashy headlines, even though the majority of cases never hold up in a court of law. Maybe they can stop trying to set up troubled muslim pizza delivery drivers and actually save/secure the Fn homeland.

Daily Iowan video segment
Cedar Rapids Gazette coverage of CR flood
Live Webcam of U of I campus along the rising Iowa River
Iowa City Press Citizen
U of Iowa flood Blog for updates


Hawkeye Blues Part 1

UPDATE: Coralville is way FD! Here is a an amazing video link of a guy driving down the strip as the waters flood the road.









Latest News Summary of the Flood
More pictures at the Flickr Account.

Hawkeye Blues Part 1

UPDATE 2:
Army Corps of Engineers staff informed Iowa City staff Friday morning, June 13, that the current water level of the Coralville Reservoir is 715.9 feet, 3.9 feet over the spillway. The level in the Reservoir is expected to peak at 717.7 at midnight on June 16th. Inflows to the Reservoir are peaking today, Friday, June 13, with an estimated 50,000 cubic feet per second (cfs) inflow.
Possible maximum flow expected during this flood event in the Iowa City area is 44,000 cfs, expected late Monday, June 16.

This correlates to an additional 4-1/2 to 5 feet of additional water. Additional rain may add to and delay the peak. The maximum flow experience in 1993 was 28,200 cfs. The flood of 2008 is now anticipated to be near or exceed a 500-year flood event.

Hawkeye Blues

My beloved Iowa City/Coralville area is under record rising waters and part of the main U of Iowa campus is currently flooding right now. More rain is expected in the area tonight and this news gives me a serious case of Hawkeye blues.

Our president is in Italy while more US towns flood in several states and large members of our National Guard units, who signed up especially to help in disasters like this one, are stuck in Iraq, hoping not to be blown up by an IED or suicide bombers.

It makes absolutely zero sense intellectually, financially, or morally. (If you did not think I was going to get a blast in on the Bush administration, you must be a visitor to MGsW)

A fire burned down the Old Capitol awhile ago, a tornado ripped through the main parts of town, the awful Steve Alford era, and now the current Kirk Ferentz boondoggle. Is that not enough suffering for Hawkeye Nation?

I hope the IC community stays strong and is able to sandbag its way to safety.