Flooding Closes I-44 and I-55

Severe flooding in Missouri has closed two major interstate routes near St. Louis. Both I-44 and I-55 are completely closed just South/West of St. Louis.

A 24 mile section of I-44 is closed from I-270 all the way to Grey Summit.

I-55 is closed at the Meramec River just south of St. Louis.

Several other roads and bridges are also closed in this area.

People traveling this direction over the New Years Holiday should look to avoid the area if at all possible.

I-57 in Illinois would be a good alternative to I-55.

Those looking to use I-44 should probably find a route that will take them up to I-70 somewhere in Western or Central Missouri - perhaps US-54 and MO-5 between Fulton and Lebanon.

MODOT official recommendations:

I-55 is closed at the Meramec River South of I-270. The Alternate route currently is Route 231 to US 61/67 to Imperial Main Street.
Interstate 44 closed in multiple locations in Missouri. Use I-70 to cross Missouri then I-49 to reconnect to I-44.

Many smaller roads in the Lake of the Ozarks area, particularly those downstream from Bagnell Dam, are flooded. Never enter a flooded road - anything from 4" or deeper can kill you. So far, 17 deaths have happened in MO from this issue alone.

My daughter is fine, but wonders how many students will have an unexpected "flood day" if they can't leave their rural homes because the flood waters haven't receded!


Donna

Quote:

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Originally Posted by glc

I-55 is closed at the Meramec River South of I-270. The Alternate route currently is Route 231 to US 61/67 to Imperial Main Street.

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That's a good route for local traffic, but that route also takes you along the only bridge in the area that is still open, thus you can expect to find huge backups and delays. MO-231 aka Telegraph Road is a small two lane road that's not even close to being designed for the kind of traffic that flows through that area on a daily basis.

If you're heading to St. Louis from out of the area - Memphis for example - getting on I-57 at Sikeston, MO up through Illinois to I-64 will likely save you a lot of time and frustration.

Update - I-44 is now open from Oklahoma to MO-100 at Gray Summit. MO-100 is open from Gray Summit all the way into the city. That looks like a good alternate, but I'd expect heavy congestion. It beats going all the way to Kansas City then back south.

Mississippi River bridges between I-255 and I-57 - the US-51 bridge near Perryville is closed but the Cape Girardeau bridge is open. That wouldn't help you though, IL-3 is closed in several areas.

New update: 2 lanes of northbound I-55 have reopened, southbound still closed. Just spoke to a friend in Eureka and he says the water is receding.

Missouri DOT just announced that all Interstates are back open, including both I-44 and I-55.