Several residents of the Council Bluffs area had to be rescued this morning (Monday) due to torrential rain. The governor says one woman was rescued with little time to spare, as her home collapsed shortly afterwards.  “It is a serious situation, but I also want you to know it’s not a levee breach,” Branstad says. “That has held, but they got four inches of rain and there’s been flash-flooding in the community.”

Governor Branstad says emergency officials tell him at least three structures in Council Bluffs have collapsed this morning. “The National Guard is down there with high-water vehicles and has evacuated a number of people,” Branstad says. “They also rescued, I think, 24 children and a bus driver from a bus that also got stranded in the flooding area, so it’s a very critical situation.”

The school bus had stalled in about four-feet of water, near downtown Council Bluffs. City officials report heavy flooding on the west side of Council Bluffs, with many homeowners reporting flooded basements.

(Radio Iowa)

City officials in Council Bluffs said this (Monday) morning, that high water has reduced a portion of Interstate 80 to one-lane, numerous power lines were down, and there have been several incidents of street flooding due to heavy rain overnight. The City remains at “Alert Level 1,” which is unchanged from Sunday, and was announced following flooding along the Missouri River earlier this Summer.

The City says western and southern portion of Council Bluffs received significant rainfall early this morning. And, while numerous area in the community experienced street flooding, Public Works crews were working to maintain pumping stations and were using temporary pumps to draw-down the water levels. Still, numerous streets remained barricaded, due to flooding. One-lane of Interstate 80 westbound, west of South 24^th Street, was closed this morning, due to flooding.

City officials said also, Police and Fire Department personnel had responded to numerous calls regarding street flooding, and evacuation assistance. By eight-a.m., five persons had been assisted with evacuation from their homes, two of the evacuees were transported to a shelter. On that note, the American Red Cross has re-opened the shelter at the Community of Christ Church at 140 West Kanseville Blvd. Anyone impacted by the storm is urged to go to a Red Cross shelter for a hot meal, minor first aid, and shelter, along with counseling.

The City has also received numerous reports of trees down over power line or in right-of-ways. If you see a downed electric line, you’re asked to report it to MidAmerican Energy at 1-800-799-4443. You should always assume electric lines are energized, and never touch them.

And, due to last week’s storms, the Council Bluffs Recycling Center continues to accept tree debris from Council Bluffs residents, free of charge. The debris will be accepted during normal business hours beginning today, and will continue until further notice. The center is open from 8am-6pm, M-F, and from 8am-Noon, on Saturday. The service is available to Council Bluffs residents only, not commercial businesses, or persons living outside of the community.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa (AP) – An Iowa National Guard transport truck has been deployed to rescue around 30 children from their stranded school bus in Council Bluffs. Heavy rain overnight and Monday morning flooded some streets and basements in far western Iowa and eastern Nebraska. The bus had stalled in about 4 feet of water south of downtown Council Bluffs, near 30th and Atlantic Avenue.

The heavy truck made it slowly through the water to reach the bus. The children soon were loaded into the truck and taken to safety. No injuries were reported.

Across the Missouri River, in Omaha, Neb., some streets just north of downtown were closed. Power outages were reported in Fremont, which is northwest of Omaha.