When a sunken town emerges from the bottom of a lake, you know you’ve got a problem of Biblical proportions.
Monument City, Indiana sunk like Atlantis in 1967, as part of the creation of a reservoir. But after weeks of relentless drought, the reservoir level is so low that the forgotten town is now above water.
Monument City’s reappearance symbolizes the drought, the first major drought in the Midwest since 1988, and the worst since the drought of 1956. Things are bad out there.
The implications go far beyond the Midwest. From India to Australia to South Korea, all eyes are on the dry American Midwest.
Low rainfall in Illinois means a sharp rise in global food prices, and no one understands this better than Illinoisans, as Latitude News learned when visiting Champaign, Illinois this week. We asked Sand-hillers to share their thoughts on the local drought that’s causing a global problem.
The Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting worked with Latitude News last week to help produce this story. Read more on Latitude News.
