old train depot along mississippi river in vicksburg, mississippi., may 13, 2011. the mississippi river floods in april , may 2011 among largest , damaging along u.s. waterway in past century, rivalling major floods in 1927 , 1993. in april 2011, 2 major storm systems dumped record rainfall on mississippi river watershed. rising springtime snowmelt, river , many of tributaries began swell record levels beginning of may. areas along mississippi experiencing flooding include illinois, iowa, missouri, kentucky, tennessee, arkansas, mississippi, , louisiana. u.s. president barack obama declared western counties of kentucky, tennessee, , mississippi federal disaster areas. second time in 38 years, morganza spillway has been opened, deliberately flooding 4,600 square miles (12,000 km) of rural louisiana save of baton rouge , new orleans. reason loss of trees have absorbed water.