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Yin Reports from Iowa

University of Iowa law professor and blogger Tung Yin reports on the status of things in Iowa City:

The 380 freeway, which connects Iowa City to the airport and Cedar Rapids to the north, has been closed because of flooding where it crosses the Iowa River.  Not that there’s much point to going to Cedar Rapids, since something like 400 blocks there are submerged, including the entire downtown.  To give you an idea of how bad it is, if you needed to get from Iowa City to Cedar Rapids (~20 miles), you need to take a detour via Des Moines—which means, it’s a 240 mile trip!

Traffic within Iowa City and Coralville (right next door) is horrible, and discouraged so as to leave roads clear for emergency vehicles.

For those who don’t know, Iowa City is bisected by the Iowa River.  The only reliable way to get from the east side to the west side right now is to take the 80 freeway; the local bridges have been closed or are clogged and in danger of being closed at any time.

I’m just glad Tung and his family are safe on high ground.