Evacuations ordered in Mississippi over possible dam break

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By Rick Jervis, William M. Welch and Alison Bath, USA TODAY

NEW ORLEANS – Officials scrambled on Thursday to evacuate up to 60,000 residents in a rural area as a lake dam threatened to break near the Mississippi-Louisiana border.

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal called the situation in the Tangipahoa Parish area "the biggest challenge" the state faced Thursday. Search and rescue teams were being assembled and two nursing homes were being evacuated.

"This could change very rapidly," Jindal said. "I do want to emphasize the situation is very fluid."

If the dam breaks water would pour into the already swollen river, flooding low-lying areas downstream. Residents had less than 90 minutes to evacuate after the order was given, Jindal said at a briefing Thursday.

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http://www.usatoday.com/weather/storms/story/2012-08-30/isaac/57434590/1