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Red Cross considers additional shelter sites as flood threat increases

By Katie Knapp Schubert

Omaha, NE – American Red Cross Heartland Chapter officials say additional shelters could open as the Missouri River continues to rise.

The Heartland Chapter currently has two shelters open. One is at Fort Calhoun High School. The other is at Sidney High School in Sidney, Iowa. Both are open 24 hours.

Heartland Chapter spokeswoman Danelle Schlegelmilch says other shelter sites are under consideration in Cass, Sarpy, and Pottawattamie Counties.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plans to start releasing 150,000 cubic feet per second of water from Gavins Point Dam on Tuesday. That'll raise the Missouri River level to 34 to 36 feet in Omaha.

Mandatory or voluntary evacuations have happened in Washington, Sarpy, and Cass Counties, according to the Nebraska Emergency Management Agency