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It’s hard to sum up the damage from the floods in Nebraska and Iowa. But after driving 944 miles across the two states this week, I’ll give it a try. To start, here’s a look at how agriculture, which drives the Plains economy, was devastated: nytimes.com/2019/03/18/us/…
The farm I visited in Verdigre, Neb., close to South Dakota, was a near-total loss: Cows dead, tractors overturned, alfalfa fields stripped bare by glacial-looking ice chunks the size of cars. After five generations, the owners doubted whether they could stay in business. 
Even getting to farms and towns to see the damage remains a challenge. Some people were cut off from work and school for days. With damage to roads and bridges in the hundreds of millions of dollars (at least), @govricketts asked for expedited federal aid. nytimes.com/2019/03/19/us/…
This all started last week, when heavy rain, melting snow and frozen ground created a dangerous cocktail that overwhelmed rivers and levees. Here’s my story from last Thursday, when officials in Norfolk, Neb., were seeking an airboat to save a family. nytimes.com/2019/03/14/us/…
Last weekend, the situation grew even more severe. The city of Fremont, Neb., population 26,000, became a virtual island. The National Guard rescued people by helicopter. Aid convoys delivered water. Here’s @mihirzaveri’s report on those dangerous days: nytimes.com/2019/03/16/us/…
Everywhere I went in Nebraska and Iowa, people were helping. Ranchers loaned pasture to neighbors who lost grazing land. Church groups cooked meals. Donations of water and clothes piled up in school gyms.
Flooding was not limited to Nebraska and Iowa. Over much of the Midwest — South Dakota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas — floods have rattled nerves and hurt livelihoods. @adeelnyt explains how: nytimes.com/2019/03/18/us/…
Along the Missouri River, periodic flooding is a fact of life. But in Hamburg, Iowa, this is the second record-breaker this decade. “I’m looking at global warming — I don’t need to see the graphs,” the mayor said. nytimes.com/2019/03/20/us/…
As water recedes in most of Nebraska and Iowa, the flooding risk continues in parts of Kansas and Missouri, where state troopers made water rescues last night.
Vice President Pence toured the damage on Tuesday, and President Trump has tweeted his support. Officials in Nebraska and Iowa say they expect the rebuilding process to take at least many months, and to require lots of federal help.
Especially along the Missouri River, there was a sense of deja vu. I was reporting for @JournalStarNews back in 2011, during the last big flood, and recall a sense that it was a once-in-a-generation event. This time, with far worse damage, people wonder if it's a new normal.
To get a sense of how bad things still look along the Missouri, here's aerial footage that Nebraska's governor posted yesterday.
President Trump just approved a major disaster declaration for Nebraska, opening more federal assistance to the flood-ravaged state.
The catastrophic floods of recent days might be just the beginning. Around 13 million people could be exposed to major flooding this “potentially unprecedented” season, @jswatz reports. nytimes.com/2019/03/21/cli…
Flooding continues tonight in parts of Kansas. So many homes and towns and farms have been hit this week on the Great Plains.
