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Expected levels declared
Local officials say 1993 flood levels are expected -
Iowa River
Iowa River surpasses flood stage of 22 feet -
500-year flood expected
Local officials say 500-year flood expected.
Cedar River predicted crest: 20 feet in Cedar Rapids. -
Sandbagging
City braces for flood by sandbagging, building dirt levees. -
Evacuations Start
Police and volunteer citizens go door-to-door to assist with evacuations. -
Bridges Close
Cedar River predicted to crest at 24.7 feet.
River crest forecast gauge fails.
Downtown bridges close in the evening. -
Flash Floods begin
Heavy rains produce flash floods.
Predicted crest: 32 feet.
8,000 citizens evacuated, including Quaker Oats, Cedar Rapids Police station and all of downtown. -
More sandbagging
Volunteers sandbag and save the city's last water well.
May's Island, downtown, and neighborhoods inundated.
Thousands without power (including all of downtown) -
Flood waters peaked at 31.12 feet
Floodwaters peaked at 31.12 feet, setting a record high and overcoming the previous record of 20.00 ft set on March 18, 1929. -
River crests at 31.1 feet at 10:15 am
River crests 20 feet above flood stage.
10,000 evacuated (including Mercy Medical Center)
Water use limited to drinking only.
Interstate 380 closed at Iowa River bridge.
U.S. Coast Guard arrives. -
Disaster Areas Declared
Linn and Johnson counties declared federal disaster areas. -
Strike teams beging checking homes as flood waters slowly receed
Strike teams begin entering flooded neighborhoods to determine saftey.
Tempers flare when residents are denied entry to their neighborhoods. -
River level: 24.3 feet
River falls to 24.3 feet -- still higher than any previous flood level. -
Corridor Recovery Official Launch
At 3:00pm, Corridor Recovery (via <a href ="/default.asp" target="_blank">www.corridorrecovery.org</a>) was officially launched with an announcement at the daily press conference by Mayor, Kay Halloran. Corridor Recovery is a not-for-profit partnership between government, civic, business and faith-based organizations, created to respond to the Flood of 2008. As the flood waters peaked, Corridor Recovery quickly became the primary resource for materials and information for the local area. -
City Hall Moves
City Hall moves to an Aegon-owned building.
The city and county offices go to Westdale Mall.
The courts are moved to Kirkwood College. -
Highways begin reopening
Interstate 380 reopens to allow access to and from Iowa City. -
Bridges reopen
Four downtown bridges reopen.
City council sets up contractor certification system.
Pleas for buyouts begin. -
Floodwaters receed
Floodwaters receed revealing mud-covered neighborhoods and ruined shells that citizens called home. -
President Visits Cedar Rapids
The President visits the Cedar Rapids Emergency Operations Center. -
Water restriction lifted
Water restrictions are lifted except for industry corporations. -
River level back to normal.
River level drops to 12 feet for the first time since June 2. -
Number of homes to be razed
City says that 2,000 homes are likely to be razed. -
Power starts to be restored
Power to the downtown area begins to be restored. -
$2.6 billion aid package signed
President Bush signs $2.6 billion aid package for Midwest disasters. -
FEMA trailers arrive in Cedar Rapids
The first FEMA mobile homes arrive in Cedar Rapids for temporary housing. -
Mercy fully operational
Mercy Medica Center announces operations are fully restored after flood. -
City cautious about buyouts
The city cautions homeowners not to count on FEMA buyouts. -
Red Cross closes
Red Cross closes on emergency shelter; local agencies take control of the other shelter. -
Small Business Recovery Fund
The Cedar Rapids City Council contributes $3 million to the Job and Small Business Recovery Fund. -
Flood Control Plans
Cedar Rapids holds the first of three open houses on flood control plan. -
Cedar Rapids School District moves
Cedar Rapids school headquarters reopen in mobile homes at Kingson Stadium. -
School starts... student move.
The school year starts in Cedar Rapids with students from the flooded Taylor school moved to other schools. -
Homeowners requested buyouts
A list of 739 homeowners requesting buyouts from the city is submitted. -
Speaker of the House visits
The Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, tours Iowa disaster sites, including Cedar Rapids. -
Jumpstart Announced
Governor Chet Culver announces $40 million in state Jumpstart funds for tornado and flood victims. -
Norwoo Souvenir announces closure
Norwoo Souvenir announces it will close the century-old plant at 202 F Ave. NW, Cedar Rapids. -
Courts partially return
District courts partially return to Linn County Courthouse on May's Island. -
Grant Funding becomes available
$85 million, first of two rounds of block grant funding, released to Iowa. -
City Council commits to buy outs.
The Cedar Rapids City Council commits to buying out flood-damaged properties between the river and proposed levees. -
FEMA closes last center
FEMA closes the last of the disaster recovery centers in Iowa. -
Volunteers help rehab 140 homes
Over 1,400 volunteers with Eight Days of Hope rehab 140 homes in Cedar Rapids and Palo during a weeklong stay. -
Buy Out home demolitions begin
The first of 71 city-designated home demolition takes place at 1229 Fourth Street SE, Cedar Rapids. -
Swiss Valley closes
Swiss Valley Farms announces the closure of its 88-year-old plant at 133 F Ave. NW, Cedar Rapids. -
Library opens temporary location
The Cedar Rapids downtown library announces the temporary move to Westdale Mall (to move in January 2009) -
Flood Protection Plan adopted
The Cedar Rapids City Council adopts the flood protection plan and sends it to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
