What happens when a once-in-a-lifetime event occurs more than once in a lifetime? Well, it catches a lot of people by surprise and creates some odd ironies. That was the case this week when heavy rains came to Iowa and flooded a museum.

The rising Mississippi River interrupted travel on two bridges between Iowa and Illinois and threatened thousands of acres of farmland.

Residents of the central and southern Midwest are crossing their fingers, saying their prayers, planning evacuations, and in some cases filling sandbags in preparation for the excessive water ravishing communities in Iowa and Wisconsin.

Authorities at Emerald in Queensland's central highlands are keeping a close watch on the flooded Nogoa River which is expected to peak this afternoon.

Queensland Emergency Services Minister Neil Roberts flew into the central Queensland town of Emerald last night to be briefed on the latest flood situation.

Hundreds of thousands of people have fled severe floods in the South Mexican state of Tabasco where rivers burst their banks after heavy rain.

American preservationists breathed a sigh of relief in August as the Farnsworth House, a Ludwig Mies van der Rohe designed house widely considered a masterpiece of modern architecture, was spared by flooding along the Fox River in Plano.

The European Commission is preparing a new emergency humanitarian decision of €2 million to help the estimated 500,000 people directly affected by the record high torrential rains that struck the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in the past weeks.

South Korea has announced a multi-million dollar aid package for North Korea, where hundreds of thousands of people are suffering because of floods. The United States has also pledged to send help. VOA's Kurt Achin has more from Seoul.

Almost 300 people are dead or missing in floods in North Korea, an aid agency said on Thursday, as the communist state painted a grim picture of inundated crops and homes, power cuts and washed-out roads.