More residents along the swollen Missouri River are under a mandatory evacuation order. Mills County Emergency Management spokesperson Shari Bowen says it’s a precautionary measure. “Right now there are no immediate threats from the levee system,” Bowen said. “Our concern is our groundwater that’s seeped up…the drainage water that’s come down into that area isn’t able to pass into the river system through the normal drainage channel.” The order to evacuate affects rural residents living between the river and Interstate 29 from the Fremont County line to just north of Glenwood.

Bowen estimates 80 homes are affected and most have already evacuated. Fremont County evacuated the area between I-29 and the river earlier this week because of concerns with the levee. Bowen says the levee is holding in Mills County, but the rise of interior groundwater is causing problems. “We have various roads in the area that are becoming impassable,” Bowen said.

Residents are being told to leave the area of Mills County before 4 p.m. today (Friday). The Red Cross has set up a shelter in Malvern for anyone who needs a place to stay.

(Pat Curtis/Radio Iowa)