(CNN) Nearly 10 million people across the Midwest were under a flood warning Saturday as several spots along the Mississippi River were expected to reach near-record crests this weekend, the latest threats to a region that got slammed this week by severe flooding. The river's cresting -- the highest stage or level of a flood wave -- was due to affect communities in Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky and Tennessee, CNN meteorologist Haley Brink said. Even after a river crests, flooding can still be a problem. Those who live near the Mississippi River in Cape Girardeau in southern Illinois and southeast Missouri prepared for an onslaught.The Mississippi River crested near its record height Saturday near Cape GirardeauExtensive flooding from a week of rain has hit the central United States
Floods already have killed six people in _ and seven in Arkansas, including a 10-year-old who was swept away while climbing a fence to avoid the water, officials said.