{"id":14024,"date":"2024-01-06T23:40:10","date_gmt":"2024-01-06T22:40:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aboutriver.com\/?p=14024"},"modified":"2024-01-06T23:40:10","modified_gmt":"2024-01-06T22:40:10","slug":"will-the-mississippi-river-flood-in-2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aboutriver.com\/will-the-mississippi-river-flood-in-2022\/","title":{"rendered":"Will The Mississippi River Flood In 2022"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The banks of the Mississippi River are prone to flooding, and the fact that a potential flood in 2022 is a concern should not come as a surprise. The Lower Mississippi is especially vulnerable to floods, with the Army Corps of Engineers recording an average of 13 major floods within a 70-year period. Most recently, monumental flooding in 2019 caused catastrophic damage, leading to an estimated total of $150 million in losses.<\/p>\n

Experts are divided about whether or not the Mississippi River will experience a major flood in 2022. Some predict that current efforts to improve infrastructure and store water in reservoirs will protect the Mississippi from a catastrophic flood. Unfortunately, every increase in infrastructure is matched with an increase in development, which can mean more runoff and water ranging downstream, which can spell trouble in the form of flooding.<\/p>\n

While some scientists believe that better engineered dams, levees, and reservoirs will help to stop the cycle of extreme flooding, there are some who think that it isn’t possible to contain the river’s water with engineering structures. These experts point out that the magnitude in sheer size, combined with excessive and heavy rainfall events, makes it very difficult for these structures to be effective in stemming the tide of a flood.<\/p>\n

Another consideration is that the prediction accuracy for flooding is not reliable. Inaccurate forecasting can be based on elements such as chance events, faulty assumptions, inadequate data, and out of date information which can lead to wrong conclusions.<\/p>\n