‘HISTORIC LEVELS’

Hundreds Evacuate in Mississippi as Pearl River Nears Historic Flood Levels

Gov. Tate Reeves that the state faces a “precarious situation that can turn at any moment.”

Hundreds of people in Jackson, Mississippi, have evacuated their homes as the Pearl River continues to rise, threatening catastrophic flooding. Gov. Tate Reeves said that the state faces a “precarious situation that can turn at any moment.” “We expect the river to continue to rise over the next 24 hours or so,’’ Reeves said at a news conference in Jackson. The river runs east of downtown Jackson and hit its third-highest level on record Sunday morning at 36.38 feet. It is expected to crest at 38 feet by Monday, which means a large number of homes will be flooded by up to 6 feet of water, according to Reeves. The governor declared a state of emergency on Saturday as law-enforcement officers went door to door in affected areas. “We don't anticipate the situation to end any time soon. It will be days before we are out of the woods and the water starts to recede,” the governor said, adding that authorities are expecting a “historic, unprecedented flood.”