High and Dry
August 16, 2010
Written by Al Setka, Director of Communications
Thanks to all of you this past week who expressed concerned about flooding on the Great Ape Trust campus. Here's a quick update with some photos.
Water in our lake remains very high but below the flood levels of early July. At that time, the Des Moines River adjacent to our campus crested at 29.6 feet and several feet of floodwaters covered the access road to our bonobo and orangutan homes - creating an island for 10 days. Flood stage for that portion of the river is 24 feet. To put this in perspective, levels in 2008 were at 35 feet.
During this August round of central Iowa flooding, the Des Moines River crested at 27.4 feet and our access road remained dry. The ape care staff went into their flood preparations, however, operations continued in a normal manner. If dry weather remains, the river is expected to dip under the 24 foot flood stage by the middle of this week (August 18).
For a slide show of current campus conditions, highlight and click on this link:
