US: Flooding Mississippi River poses dire threats

Memphis area residents were warned that the Mississippi River was gradually starting to surround the city and rise to record levels. County officials went house-to-house in areas threatened by flooding from both the Mississippi and its tributaries. Nearly 3,000 properties are expected to be threatened. Residents are being told that if they have been flooded before, they will be again. Most of downtown Memphis is on a bluff above the river, so landmarks like the Peabody Hotel are not considered at risk. Graceland Mansion, the home of rock legend Elvis Presley, was dry and not affected by the floods.This years flooding is set to eclipse numerous crest records set mainly in 1927 and 1937. The Great Flood of 1927 swelled the Lower Mississippi to 80 miles wide in some parts, caused up to 1,000 deaths by some estimates and drove more than 600,000 people from their homes. Since 1927, levees have been raised and constructed with different methods, dozens of reservoirs have been added across the basin and floodways have been added for use on rare occasions to relieve.