{"id":8074,"date":"2011-04-30T22:06:50","date_gmt":"2011-05-01T02:06:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/i-heart-ny\/2011\/04\/prayers-for-the-south.html"},"modified":"2017-11-08T11:45:41","modified_gmt":"2017-11-08T16:45:41","slug":"prayers-for-the-south","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.albany.com\/i-heart-ny\/2011\/04\/prayers-for-the-south\/","title":{"rendered":"Record Rainfall, Tornadoes, Storms Ravage the South"},"content":{"rendered":"

Spring in the South is a beautiful time! There’s really nothing prettier than all of the trees turning, the flowers blooming and the birds chirping. But over the last few days, folks down in our neck of the woods have been having a hell of a time. If you’ve missed the national news, the country has been under fire from Mother Nature…and it sure ain’t pretty.<\/p>\n

\n\"flooding<\/p>\n

My home town is Qulin, Missouri which is about 13 miles south of Poplar Bluff. The two towns are separated by the Black River. The river couldn’t hold the record amounts of rainfall the area has received over the last week and to say it mildly, Southeast Missouri is soggy! The overflowing river has covered vital transportation routes, shutting down schools and closing businesses. More than 1,000 residents have been evacuated! My parents don’t live close to the river but have had trouble getting to Poplar Bluff for work after the roadways were closed for flooding.<\/p>\n

\n\"poplar-bluff-flood.jpg\"<\/p>\n

Butler County, Missouri<\/strong><\/p>\n

Just up the road from Poplar Bluff is the Wappapello Lake. Water toppled over the spillway this week once the water crested at 400 feet. This is what it looks like now…<\/p>\n