As flooding nears, Memphis residents 'pray every day'

Memphis, Tennessee (CNN) -- The Mississippi River has begun cresting at Memphis, forecasters said Tuesday.

But the slow passing of the bulge of water that's working its way from north to south along the Mississippi is only the beginning of the end of the siege for Memphis residents, who could be dealing with high water levels into June.

The river measured 13.87 feet above flood stage as of 7 a.m. Tuesday, according to the National Weather Service, which had not yet reported an official crest. Water levels could fall or rise slightly, said CNN meteorologist Jacqui Jeras.

"This is a long process that has small peaks and valleys," she said.

The Mississippi is the highest it's been at Memphis since 1937, when it crested at 48.7 feet -- 14.7 feet above flood stage. That flood killed 500 people and inundated 20 million acres of land, said Col. Vernie Reichling, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Memphis District commander.

So far, the levees protecting the area have only shown minor weaknesses, which workers have been able to control, he said.

"We design these levees for the worst possible case and them we add two to three feet of freeboard. So what you're seeing today is these levees and floodwalls performing as designed," he said.

The river covered the lowest parts of the city's historic Beale Street and had already forced about 400 people from their homes Monday, Memphis Mayor A.C. Wharton Jr. said. Another 1,300 remained in low-lying areas, he said.

One of the Memphis residents in peril was Latisha Bowles. Her neighborhood had been swallowed by flood waters but so far her home was the last one at the waters' edge.

"It wants to come up here, but I've been praying every day it don't," Bowles told CNN affiliate WMC Monday. "I got three kids and I'm not ready to move out of my house over this."

President Barack Obama signed a disaster declaration for Tennessee Monday, which will help direct federal aid toward recovery efforts in areas hit by severe storms, flooding and tornadoes since early April.

Although the river was cresting, Reichling warned Memphis residents not to assume everything will soon return to normal.

"The flooding is going to stay," he said. "This river is not going to drop below 47 (feet) until early next week at the earliest. And that means all the tributaries that flow into this are going to stay high."

Once past Tennessee, the crest will next target Louisiana and Mississippi, where residents and authorities continued preparations for river levels that could break records set in 1927, when flooding displaced 600,000 people and caused the equivalent of nearly $624 million in damages, according to the National Weather Service.

Forecasters don't expect anywhere near that kind of flooding, in large part because of the network of levees built after that disaster. The Corps of Engineers has also opened a spillway to divert some of the high water to the Gulf of Mexico by way of Lake Pontchartrain, avoiding New Orleans and other low-lying communities near the mouth of the Mississippi River.

The Corps is also considering opening a second spillway whose flooding could impact populated areas. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal said his states' National Guard has asked for at least three days to evacuate the area should the Corps give such an order,

The river's crest was expected to begin arriving in Louisiana next week. So far, 21 parishes have issued emergency declarations, Jindal said. He said 400 National Guard troops were helping prepare for the flood.

Flooding is the last thing needed in southern Louisiana, which is still recovering from Hurricane Katrina, said Lynn Magnuson, a New Orleans resident who submitted footage of the flooding to CNN iReport.

"I went through Katrina," Magnuson said. "I would not wish flooding on anyone, and this city is the last place on Earth that needs any more high water."

Flooding also continued to be a problem in southeastern Missouri and southern Illinois, even though the Mississippi and Ohio rivers have already crested in those states.

Last week, the Corps intentionally breached a levee in Missouri as part of its effort to reduce the pressure on other levees, flooding 130,000 acres of agricultural land over the objection of state officials and some farmers.

"I'm very sad. I look at that and I don't have a home," Marilynn Nally said, pointing to her flooded family farm. "I feel like we're having to suffer for somebody else."

The latest flooding in the Mississippi and Ohio river valleys is largely the byproduct of torrential rains throughout the region. Over one two-week stretch, there was about 600% more precipitation than usual, forecasters said.

The weather appears to be working in the flood fighters' favor. Only minimal rain is expected over the coming days, with daytime temperatures forecast to be in the upper 80s and 90s through Thursday.