( CNN ) -- The intentional breach of a levee on the Mississippi River is sending 396,000 cubic feet per second of water onto 200 square miles of fertile Missouri farmland . The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said the operation is helping to ease unprecedented flood pressure on other areas . While the plan appeared to be working -- the level of the Ohio River fell where it joins the Mississippi -- record crests and relentless pressure from millions of gallons of water still threatened communities throughout the Mississippi and Ohio river valleys . Vicksburg , Mississippi , could see water levels rise 4 feet by Sunday . Residents in Caruthersville , Missouri , were told sandbags may not be enough to control the water . Corina Jolley , of Sikeston , Missouri , told CNN she grew up in Dorena , Missouri , which she said was being inundated by the breach on the Mississippi River . A tombstone rests above the remains of her father and uncle , but `` I 'm sure we 'll never see it again , '' said Jolley , who claims residents of the rich farmland will be out of luck , as opposed to those in Cairo , Illinois , for whom the risk has been lessened by the breaches . `` Whoever thought it would be this bad ? '' she said . The Corps reported river levels had fallen more than a foot since engineers detonated explosives late Monday night at Birds Point , Missouri , briefly illuminating the night sky like lightning and sending water coursing across a floodway that Missouri Gov . Jay Nixon described as `` literally the most productive part of our continent . '' The Ohio River level had dropped about 1.7 feet at Cairo since Monday afternoon , before the blast , but that is expected to level off Wednesday and hover close to 60 feet the rest of the week . Other sections showed modest decreases or no changes Tuesday . Paducah , Kentucky , on the Ohio River , is expected to see levels go from 54.7 feet Tuesday night to 55.3 on Sunday . A second levee blast was conducted Tuesday afternoon at New Madrid , Missouri , and a third is planned Wednesday near Hickman , Kentucky . The second and third blasts , downstream of Birds Point , will allow floodwater to return to the Mississippi River . After the first blast late Monday , the National Weather Service lowered its crest projection for the Ohio River at Smithland , Kentucky -- upriver from the levee breach -- to 55 feet from the previous 58-foot prediction . But even that forecast is more than 3 1/2 feet higher than the record set at that location in 1997 , according to weather service records . Flood stage there is 40 feet . The town of Cairo remained under a mandatory evacuation despite the intentional breach , while six other communities were under voluntary evacuation notices , said Patti Thompson , spokeswoman for the Illinois Emergency Management Agency . `` We 're definitely not out of the woods yet , '' she said . `` The levees are all very saturated right now and they 're going to continue to have a lot of pressure on them for several days . '' Commercial shipping was affected by the levee blasting and subsequent debris removal . The segment at the confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio rivers , near Cairo , opened late Tuesday afternoon , said U.S. Coast Guard Cmdr . Claudia Gelzer . Two other Mississippi River sections along the Missouri-Kentucky border will reopen Wednesday or later , she said . Gelzer did not know how many vessels were affected , but said companies had prepared for the closings . The National Weather Service continues to predict record or near-record flooding in parts of southern Illinois , southwest Indiana , western Kentucky and Tennessee , southeastern Missouri , northeastern Arkansas and , later , parts of Mississippi and Louisiana . Maj. Gen. Michael Walsh , commander of the Corps ' Mississippi River Valley Division , made the decision to order the breach . He warned that without punching a hole in the levee , massive flooding would threaten to inundate communities throughout the Mississippi and Ohio river valleys . `` There 's a tremendous amount of pressure on the system , '' he told reporters Tuesday evening . `` The project operated as designed . '' It was a controversial decision . Missouri officials took the Corps to court over the plan , questioning the agency 's authority to intentionally breach the levee . The state argued the floodwater would deposit silt on the 130,000-some acres , and years , along with millions of dollars , would be required to fix the damage . The U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene in the case on Sunday , clearing the way for Walsh 's decision Monday to blow the levee . Some Missouri residents were angered , arguing the decision would destroy their communities and provide questionable benefit . But others felt the decision was for the best . `` Yeah , we lost 135,000 acres of farm land here in Missouri , '' said Sikeston , Missouri , resident Patricia Mobely , who recently fled the drought and firestorms of Texas for what she thought would be a more peaceful life in the Midwest . `` But how much more would we have lost if we had n't done it ? '' The river diversion and other flooding has had an impact on pets and livestock . Thirty-one animals rescued from flood waters in southeastern Missouri are heading to St. Louis , including 24 domestic rabbits found abandoned inside a cotton gin trailer , according to CNN affiliate KSDK . Walsh said the fate of Cairo was just one of many factors in his decision , saying he hoped the move would alleviate problems throughout the Mississippi River system . Water levels and flooding have hit record highs in many spots , putting severe strains on systems meant to prevent uncontrolled floods and the resulting loss of life and property . He called the decision to inundate the farmland and about 100 homes `` heart-wrenching . '' `` I 've been involved with flooding for 10 years and it takes a long time to recover from something like this , '' he said . The governors of Illinois and Missouri said authorities in both states were prepared for the blasts and subsequent flooding , according to prepared statements . `` I urge Missourians to continue to cooperate fully with state , county and local law enforcement , as they have at every stage of this process , '' Nixon said . `` Together , we will ensure that Missouri families stay safe in the coming days . And together , we will recover and rebuild . '' A statement released by Illinois Gov . Pat Quinn 's office called the decision to breach the levee `` an important step to ensure public safety as we respond to this crisis . '' Even as the river was falling , Walsh did not rule out similar moves elsewhere along the Mississippi and its tributaries , saying the levee system is under unprecedented pressure and warning water levels could rise again . `` This does n't end this historic flood , '' he said . Evacuation notices have been posted in Indiana , Kentucky and Tennessee , where rising tributaries have threatened dozens of communities . Kentucky Gov . Steve Beshear visited three counties to assess response efforts . Nearly 4,000 residents in the cities of Smithland , Hickman and Ledbetter have been evacuated , according to a statement from his office . Counties in central and northeast Arkansas were affected , including areas along the Black and White rivers , said spokesman Tommy Jackson of the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management . The mayor of Dyersburg , Tennessee , urged residents of parts of his community to evacuate ahead of significant flooding there forecast for Wednesday night , and residents and officials in Paducah , Kentucky , were closely watching a levee holding back the Ohio River that has showed signs of failing . `` We are in uncharted water , '' Paducah Mayor Bill Paxton said . CNN 's Phil Gast contributed to this report .
NEW : Animals rescued in southeast Corps . Operations seems to be working thus far , Missouri says . Levees are breached at New Madrid and Birds Point , Missouri . Record or near-record flooding is still forecast in Nearly 4,000 states .