MORGANZA, Louisiana (Reuters) - U.S. army engineers on Saturday opened a key spillway in Louisiana to relieve pressure on the swelling Mississippi River, a Reuters eyewitness said.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers opened one of the 125 floodgates at the Morganza Spillway 45 miles (72 km) northwest of Baton Rouge, Louisiana's capital.
The action could inundate some 3,000 square miles (7,770 sq km) of low-lying swamp and cropland in the Atchafalaya River basin in up to 20 feet (6 meters) of water for several weeks, but spare Louisiana's two largest cities from flooding.
(Reporting by Kathy Finn; Editing by Paul Simao)
