While still unofficial, the record water level tops a 22.63 foot reading during the Great Flood of 1993, with the mark set on July 9 that year. The reading is almost eight feet above flood stage.

Davenport is Iowa’s third-largest city, and the largest on the Mississippi River without permanent flood control. On Tuesday afternoon, a temporary barrier there failed. A wall of water then rushed into downtown before the river kept rising.

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A number of people had to be rescued from several locations given how swiftly the water rose.

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While major flooding is ongoing from the east-central border area of Iowa to near St. Louis on the Mississippi River, Davenport is seeing some of the worst. Illinois City, to Davenport’s southwest about 20 miles, is also seeing a crest only a half-foot or so from its 1993 high mark.

Scenes of flooding along the Mississippi share Share View Photos View Photos Next Image May 5, 2019 | Marissa Whitman, 20, wades in about three feet of floodwater from the swelling Mississippi River, while guiding a boat carrying her boyfriend, Brendan Cameron, and his mother in East Foley, Mo. (Laurie Skrivan/AP)

River levels are near peak for this latest flooding episode. But, in many spots, moderate to a major flooding will persist for at least a week even as waters slowly recede. New rain could stop this recession or even cause water levels to rise again.

Following a record wet winter for the nation and a soggy 2018, as well, episodes of flooding have come in several waves in the central United States. In 1993, similar waves continued deep into the summer season.