Monticello business owner watches Maquoketa river overrun his shop

Jay Iben sat in the bucket of his skid loader Saturday afternoon and watched the Maquoketa River overrun his shop. Again.

“I'm kind of losing track” how many times he's had to evacuate Jay Iben Construction, 21574 River Rd., in the past decade, Iben said. But he figured it's been at least nine times.

“Actually, right now I'm pretty happy,” said Iben. “I got everything I wanted out. There's some stuff in there yet, but you can't take it all.”

By 2:45 p.m., River Road on both sides of Business Highway 151 was barricaded and flooded. But Iben and others in Monticello were cautiously confident, despite the knowledge Lake Delhi was literally making its way downstream.

“This is not a wall (of water),” said Monticello Police Sgt. Britt Smith, the department's acting chief. “This is just an influx.”

After the Delhi dam failed about 1 p.m., Monticello officials warned residents of low-lying neighborhoods  to expect a big rise in the river, but no mandatory evacuation orders were issued. With the Lake Delhi impoundment dissipating over thousands of acres of farmland,  worries eased, and Smith warned against “rumors you're hearing about a tidal wave, a tsunami, or anything like that.”

Volunteers turned out at the city maintenance garage on Highway 38 helped to fill sandbags and place them at critical points, including an Alliant Energy substation.

“The local officials seem to be doing a great job getting people out of harm's way,” said Gov. Chet Culver, at  an improvised command post at the garage.

Culver said National Guard damage assessment teams were in Monticello, Delhi, and points between Saturday afternoon.

“Based on how things unfold, we can bring more troops in,” said Culver.

A few blocks away, the midway at the Great Jones County Fair was operating, although crowds were thin. Saturday night's auto racing and grandstand shows were cancelled.

Downstream, a record crest of nearly 35 feet – 11 above flood stage – is expected late this afternoon (SUN) at Maquoketa. That's enough to top the levee protecting the industrial section at the north end of town, according to the National Weather Service.

“Nobody has a clear sense of how much water is pouring down this watershed,” said U.S. Rep. Bruce Braley.

Braley spent the day following the Maquoketa and Wapsipinicon surges, stopping at Independence, Manchester, and Hopkinton before Monticello. He said he was heartened to see flood mitigation and planning had paid off in Independence and Manchester, preventing further damage.

“We've seen communities that have had less damage than we would have seen, because of the steps they've taken,” Braley said.

Braley said the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) had been alerted.

“It's never been that high,” Mayor Don Miyagawa said as he watched the river, “but I'm not too concerned yet.”

A mile or so downstream, Iben was resigned to several days mopping up, but didn't sound worried, either.

“If we make it to 8:30 without anything floating away, we're going to have a party,” he told a friend.