Flooding drowns zoo animals in Duluth, Minn. - msnbc.com

Many animals at the Lake Superior Zoo in Duluth, Minn., drowned overnight when torrential rain caused flooding across the city, swamping roads and sending sewage spilling outside overflow tanks.
"Our entire staff is devastated," Peter Pruett, the zoo's director of animal management, told the Duluth News Tribune.
All but one of the zoo's barnyard animals died, spokeswoman Keely Johnson told the newspaper. That included the zoo's donkey, goats and sheep.
More animals might have drowned but the flooding has prevented a count, she said. The raven and vulture cages are among the areas still under water.
The zoo's seal was able to swim out of its exhibit and was found on nearby Grand Avenue, the Duluth News Tribune reported.
The polar bear also got out but was quickly darted and is safe in quarantine, Johnson said. None of the zoo's dangerous animals got outside the zoo's perimeter fence, she added.
Police helped locate Berlin, the female polar bear, the Associated Press reported. "Even though it's a large white object, it's pretty nerve racking," police spokesman Jim Hansen said.
Dozens of people commented on the zoo's Facebook page, most expressing sadness but some anger over what they felt was inadequate precautions by the zoo, which is next to a creek that has flooded before.
A 2010 flood was the worst in memory, the zoo said at the time. But in that event no animals died or were hurt and only one had to be moved.
Across Duluth, a flash flood warning was in effect through Wednesday afternoon, and some neighborhoods are still being evacuated after 8 inches of rain fell.
Mayor Don Ness on Wednesday morning declared a state of emergency in the city.
"There is another band of rain on our way, so it is likely to get worse before it gets better," he said.
The flooding shut down Interstate 35 in several sections, including the city's downtown tunnels, and many streets.
"It's a mess. There are too many intersections to even list that are closed," Hansen said.
Sinkholes and mudslides were reported across the city. Many homeowners saw flooded basements while others got it even worse.
"Unbelievable. You expect blizzards in Duluth," homeowner Darrin Berg told the Duluth News Tribune. "You don’t expect floods."
Berg saw water from a nearby creek reach his first-floor windows.
The record rain also caused the city's new sewage overflow system to fail.
"We don’t even know the extent of it yet because it’s too dangerous to be out checking in some spots," Karen Anderson, a spokeswoman for the sanitation district, told the newspaper.
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