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<br />Chapter 1 <br /> <br />THE FLOOD OF 1993 <br /> <br />I have visited the Midwest states affected by the '93 Flood many times. Each time I have come away <br />saddened by the enonnous loss. I have never seen such devastation. On the other hand, I have <br />never witnessed such tremendous courage as that displayed by individuals who are beginning to <br />rebuild their lives. <br /> <br />Floods are a function of the location, intensity, volwne, <br />and duration of rainfall and snowmelt, Olber factors <br />include lbe characteristics of a region's topography, its <br />land-cover conditions, and lbe capacity of its floodplain <br />to conveyor store water. In 1993 a singular <br />combination of these factors resulted in one of lbe most <br /> <br />THE BASIN <br /> <br />The upper Mississippi River Basin is physiographically, <br />ecologically, and climatologically diverse. <br />Physiographically it ranges from lbe Roclcy Mountains <br />to lbe Ozark Plateau to the Glaciated Plains and central <br />lowlands. Climatologically it ranges from the semi-arid <br />basins and plains of eastern Colorado and Wyoming to <br />lbe humid-temperate margins of lbe Great Lakes. <br />Geographic analysis divides this region into 70 terrain <br />units defined by dlstinct Combinations of illiYsical, <br />geologic, soil, ecological, climate, and land-use <br />characteristics. Each unit is subject to different <br />combinations and intensities of hydrologic and <br />geomorphic processes. Individual areas respond <br />differently to storm events and land treatments. <br /> <br />The Mississippi River rises atlbe outlet of Lake Itasca <br />in the lake and forest country of north-central <br />Minnesota and empties into the Gulf of Mexico in the <br />marshy delta just below Head-of-Passes, Louisiana. <br />Over its journey of 2,320 miles, the Mississippi River <br /> <br />Mike Espy <br />Secretary of Agriculture <br />Chair, Flood Recovery Task Porce <br />November 10, 1993 <br /> <br />costly flood disasters in U.S. history. This chapter <br />surveys the damages prevented and lbe record damages <br />reported in the 1993 flooding of lbe upper Mississippi <br />River Basin. It also addresses lbe response and <br />recovery costs for affected towns, cities. and states and <br />for lbe nation. <br /> <br />falls 1,463 feet and drains 1.25 million square fhiles <br />(sq. mi.) or 41 percent of lbe land area of lbe 48 <br />contiguous United States. That portion of the <br />Mississippi River drainage lying above its confluence <br />wilb lbe Ohio River and referred to as lbe upper <br />Mississippi River Basin is lbe focus of lbis report. It is <br />in this basin where lbe deluge of rain and consequent <br />record flooding occurred during lbe spring, summer, <br />and fall of 1993. <br /> <br />Draining all or part of 13 states, lbe upper Mississippi <br />River Basin encompasses approximately 714,000 square <br />miles. It comprises 57 percent of lbe total Mississippi <br />River Basin and 23 percent of lbe area in lbe contiguous <br />United States. Prom its source at Lake Itaska, <br />Minnesota, to its confluence with the Ohio River at <br />Cairo, Il1inois, lbe Mississippi River courses a distance <br />of 1,366 miles. Its principal tributary is lbe Missouri <br />River, which drains 529,300 sq. mi. above its moulb at <br />St Louis, Missouri. including 9,700 sq. mi. in Canads. <br /> <br />3 <br />