U.S. 61 North, closed by the swollen Mississippi River since May 13, was reopened to cars and trucks this morning.

Tests to check water levels inside the pavement at the Redwood intersection showed enough subsidence to lift barricades at about 9:30, Central District Engineer Kevin Magee said.

Levels on the Mississippi River have fallen about a half a foot a day in Vicksburg since Friday. The river was at 52.27 feet this morning, down six-tenths of a foot in 24 hours. It crested at 57.1 feet on May 19 in Vicksburg, 14.1 feet above flood stage for the city.

Today’s opening means Mississippi 3, the highway to Redwood and International Paper’s Vicksburg mill, is open to vehicles.

IP closed on May 8, leaving 296 employees without work temporarily. It was not clear this morning when the plant might reopen.

U.S. 61 South at the Big Black River remained closed this morning and was not expected to be reopened at least until Friday. Weakness detected in the northbound lane at the river bridge has prompted the later reopening, according to MDOT.

U.S. 49 West in Yazoo and Humphreys counties and 7 miles of Mississippi 16 in Yazoo reopened to traffic today, Magee said. A 10-mile stretch of Mississippi 465 between U.S. 61 and Eagle Lake closed May 3 and will remain off-limits to traffic until mid-June, highway department officials have said.

All or part of 47 city and county roads have been closed to traffic until further notice. Sand bins were being removed today from Ergon Refining’s property at the Port of Vicksburg, with the aid of trucks from the Street and Water departments. Plant officials expected the work to last into Thursday.

Sand inside the company-owned bins will be stockpiled at the fire training academy and at the city cemetery, interim city public works director Garnet Van Norman said.

About 2,000 Warren County dwellings have been damaged by the flood, which has displaced more than 3,000 people in the county.

Levels at the river side of the Steele Bayou Control Structure were 101.14 feet this morning, down six-tenths of a foot. The land side was 89.95 feet, down one-hundredth of a foot.