On Thursday, the Missouri Department of Transportation announced in a statement that a major interstate highway was being closed down amid severe flooding that had killed 21 people, Sputnik reported.
NBC News said on Friday that the total death toll from the floods was standing at 23, with 15 of the deaths having occurred in Missouri, and eight deaths – in Illinois.
Four people (two in Illinois, one in Missouri and one in Oklahoma) are missing amid the floods.
Hundreds of homes in the Midwest have been damaged as Mississippi, Meramec and Missouri rivers overflowed after heavy rainfall this week.
Missouri Governor Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency on Tuesday. Hundreds of homes and businesses have been evacuated in the state.
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