Numerous Mississippi River levees seen at risk

CHICAGO (Reuters) - The rising Mississippi River could flow over the top of "numerous levees" and damage homes and farmland if sandbagging efforts fail, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said on Tuesday.

One levee already broke in Gulfport, Illinois, across the river from Burlington, Iowa, in the worst flooding in the U.S. Midwest in 15 years.

The levees in New Orleans broke during Hurricane Katrina, causing catastrophic flooding.

(Reporting by Lisa Shumaker; Editing by Gary Hill)