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MOLINE, Thursday, March 14, 2019 | QCOnline.com | $2.00 River waters are on the rise THOMAS GEYER The rain will be tapering off city’s public works department. [email protected]‌ Thursday and Friday but cooler “Whatever the amount of flood- temperatures return with the high ing, we’re ready. We know it’s go- ‌The Mississippi River is fore- Friday reaching 40 degrees with an ing to be challenging but our team cast to crest at 18.2 feet Sunday, overnight low into Saturday of 24 is in place,” Klipsch said. but that crest may come earlier or degrees. Alderwoman Marion Megin- be higher as the river is rising a bit Sun returns in time for the an- nis, 3rd Ward, said residents can faster than anticipated, National nual St. Patrick’s Day parade Sat- get updates about flood response Weather Service, Davenport, mete- urday with a high temperature of from the city’s website. orologist Tom Philip said Wednes- about 40 degrees. Sunday‘s forecast With the rain leaving, the re- day night. calls for sunny skies and a high of gion will have to deal with snow- Between the frozen ground, 43 degrees. melt and water runoff. According melting snow and rain, both the During the Davenport City to the National Weather Service, Mississippi River and Rock River Council meeting Wednesday, Clay portions of Minnesota already are on the rise. Merritt, with Davenport’s public have recorded the fourth snowiest The Rock River at Moline al- works department, told council February on record. ready has exceeded its 12-foot flood members he expected flooding Snow depth in eastern Minne- stage, and was at 14 feet as of 5 p.m. would not affect the upcoming St. sota ranges from 13- to 16-inches in Wednesday. The Rock at Moline is Patrick’s Day events. But he said the area of Red Wing, Minnesota, forecast to crest at 16.3 feet early there will be some detours an- to 7- to 13- inches in and around the Meg McLaughlin/[email protected]‌ Sunday. The record flood stage for nounced in the coming days. Minneapolis-St. Paul area. Around the Rock at Moline is 16.53 feet set “We’ll keep you informed as we Duluth, Minnesota, the snowpack Floodwaters surround properties along 1st Avenue South Wednesday in on April 21, 2013. go, but it’s not going to impact any- ranges from 18- to 32-inches. Carbon Cliff. A record winter for snow, heavy rains and significant melting “There is subsoil that is still fro- thing directly downtown,” Merritt are expected to cause area rivers and streams to rise quickly, prompting zen,” Philip said, “and everything said. Davenport and Rock Island to activate their flood plans while the Village of was saturated before that.” Mayor Frank Klipsch praised the See FLOOD, Page A2 Carbon Cliff is warning residents to be prepared for flooding on the Rock River. ‘This is the air we breathe’ really. This is the air we breathe.” Schools join Some 250 seventh graders at John Deere spent Wednesday in in distributing assembly lines, preparing little tree saplings for distribution 100K oak trees across the United States. John Deere Middle School GRAHAM AMBROSE is one of more than a dozen [email protected]‌ Quad-Cities schools partnering with Living Lands & Waters, an ‌MOLINE — “It’s like wrapping environmental nonprofit based presents,” Liliana Ramirez ex- in East Moline, to prepare trees plained. First, take the tree and for distribution throughout the wrap it in newspaper. Then wet spring. it in a tub of water, wring it till “The best thing we ever did was damp, bag it in plastic, and tie the to work with the schools,” said MEG MCLAUGHLIN/[email protected]‌ whole thing up. Tammy Becker, Living Lands pro- “This is important,” said gram director who led students John Deere Middle School students Fabrice Stire, 12, and Nathan Franks, 13, work together to wrap and bag oak Ramirez, a student at John Deere through the tree wrapping. saplings Wednesday at the Moline school. John Deere Middle School is one of more than a dozen Quad-Cities Middle School. Like many of her schools partnering with Living Lands & Waters, an environmental nonprofit based in East Moline, to prepare classmates, she worries about de- trees for distribution throughout the spring. See more photos at QCOnline.com/gallery. forestation. “It’s just killing us, See TREE, Page A2 Snider: Hope Creek financial status ‘sobering’ GEROLD SHELTON the Rock Island County Board’s out of this.” Snider said. “It’s al- here in the next couple of months they move forward with naming [email protected]‌ Committee-of-the-whole meeting ways important to make decisions and we will move forward,” Snider a permanent director. Wednesday night. strategically and not just emotion- said. In other business: ‌ROCK ISLAND — Rock Island “I think the reality is we have ally.” Currently the facility is run- • Rock Island County Treasurer County Administrator Jim Snider a big financial challenge to over- At the start of April, an ac- ning with an interim director af- Louisa Ewert said the county called the financial status of Hope come,” We have a lot of vendor counting firm will review more ter former director Cassie Baker received $349, 892.53 in sales Creek Care Center “sobering.” debt, we have quite a bit of debt than 4,000 pages of documents stepped down. Snider said they Snider spoke about the many to our inner-funding area, and so from the center. will likely wait until after the au- hurdles the facility is facing after it’s gonna take a big shovel to get “Hopefully we will find clarity dits have been conducted before See SNIDER, Page A2

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