NEW: Floodwaters appear to be receding, governor's spokesman says
NEW: Much of the flooding occurred in rural farm areas
Disaster declared in Delaware and Jones counties
The breach was caused by "massive rain," officials say
(CNN) -- A dam on an eastern Iowa lake suffered a "catastrophic" failure Saturday, sending a massive amount of water into nearby communities and forcing residents to flee, officials said.
The Lake Delhi dam, about 45 miles north of Cedar Rapids, failed as a result of "massive rain -- a very unusually high amount this season," according to Jim Flansburg, communications director for Gov. Chet Culver.
Culver told CNN that nearly 10 inches of rain had recently fallen in a 12-hour period in the area and was "too much water for the dam to hold."
Maquoketa River water gushes out of the Delhi Dam as areas surrounding the Maquoketa River continue to flood on Saturday.
Heavy rain caused the Lake Delhi dam in eastern Iowa to fail Saturday, sending a torrent into the river below and threatening towns downstream.
Jack Klaus, a spokesman with the Delaware County emergency management office, said warning sirens were sounding in the town of Hopkinton as water pouring down the Maquoketa River began to surround homes Saturday afternoon. Areas below and above the dam had been evacuated, including numerous cabins and homes — as many as 700 — above the dam because of high water.
"There's going to be significant losses of property there," Klaus said.
Northeast Iowa has been inundated with torrential rain in recent days, with as much as 9 inches being reported in some locations. The heavy rain has pushed the Maquoketa River to 23.92 feet — more than 2 feet above its previous record of 21.66 feet in 2004.
< snip >
"The trade of the petty usurer is hated with most reason: it makes a profit from currency itself, instead of making it from the process which currency was meant to serve. Their common characteristic is obviously their sordid avarice." ~Aristotle
Joe Wilson, GOP Congressman, Faces Wider Ethics Probe Than Previously Disclosed 
100 Grand Bore
(LOLGOP title: Local Tea Partier: The Founders Believed Whatever My Corporate Overlords Say They Believed!) 
