SIOUX CITY, Iowa (KTIV) -
The flood left the Missouri River looking very different in Siouxland. Some of the areas are slowing coming back to normal.
Some will take longer. Others will never be the same.
"You can see on the outside of this curve, it washed away the bank and caused some of the trees to fall into the bank. That's a natural part of a river system," said Steve Griebel, a conservation officer for the Iowa Department of Natural Resources.
One of the first things that will catch your eye is the trees.
"They were just under water for so long, the tree's roots still need oxygen, even though they're trees. Upwards of 15 or 20,000 acres of trees that the forestry guys were expecting almost 100 percent mortality on those trees," said Griebel. "They'll eventually come back, but for now we have a bunch of brush."
Griebel says plants and trees were uprooted along the shoreline, and that's created a sandy scene similar to a desert.
"The thing you'll notice now if you go up and down the river is that there's kind of a constant sandstorm going back and forth across the river. Every time the wind changes direction, it's a big dust cloud of sand that you have to contend with," said Griebel.
"All that sand moved into the harbor there and I just don't think that they have the money to get it all removed. And what happened when the water came over that, it slowed down and just deposited all that sand and filled in that boat ramp area," he added.
Parts of the shoreline may look barren, but fishing looks to be fine.
"As far as the fisheries are concerned, in the high waters a lot of the fish went to find an area that was suitable for spawning. So, in the next three to five years, we should actually have some improved fishing opportunities," said Griebel.
"We did gain some of the Asian carp, which is an invasive species that we'd just as soon not have. The high water allowed them to be successful spawning as well. So, you'll see a lot of them, when you're out and about this summer," said Griebel.
With animals, including geese, starting to repopulate the shoreline, the DNR is optimistic.
"We're doing a lot of work to get things back in order and things are starting to look back to the way they should be," said Griebel.
And a special warning to water skiers or tubers: Those Asian carp aren't just a hazard to other fish, they could fly out of the water and hit you in the face.
