At least 14 deaths are blamed on the storms flooding parts of the Midwest.

The latest is a woman whose car was swept away by floodwaters in southwestern Ohio.

She clung to a tree for hours before being rescued, but later died at a hospital.

Five people have died in Missouri flooding.

Five people were killed in a highway wreck in heavy rain in Kentucky. An Ohio woman likely drowned while checking a sump pump in her home, authorities said.

Two others died in southern Illinois, where a foot of rain had fallen by Wednesday afternoon in some parts.

Meantime, rivers continue rising. Authorities are warning that many rivers will be cresting well above flood stage in the next several days.

Parts of Missouri are bracing for record flood surges Friday and Saturday.

Authorities are straining to handle some of the worst flooding to hit the region in decades.

Government forecasters say the floods washing over large parts of the Midwest are just a taste of things to come.

The greatest flooding danger includes much of the Mississippi River basin, the Ohio River basin, the lower Missouri River basin, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, most of New York, all of New England and portions of the West, including Colorado and Idaho.

The National Weather Service has posted flood warnings from Texas to Pennsylvania, with flooding reported in parts of Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky.

In Ohio on Thursday, high water closed about four miles of Interstate 70.

Officials were warning some areas to watch for flash floods. Much of southwestern Ohio has gotten more than 4 inches of rain, and one county has declared a state of emergency.

The Blanchard River in Findlay, Ohio, went over its 11-foot flood level for the 10th time in the past 15 months. Officials expected it to crest at about 12 feet Thursday.

Some Waters Receding

Cincinnati television station WLWT reported that rising waters and continuing rain forced some Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky residents out of their homes, but that many should be able to return Thursday.

County officials were reporting more and more roads reopening to traffic as waters recede.

Residents in South Lebanon, Ohio, were told to leave town on Wednesday, but things didn't turn out as badly as expected.

Officials had feared a crest on the Little Miami River of 28 feet, which is 11 feet above flood stage. The river had begun to recede by mid-afternoon Wednesday after cresting around 24 feet, said Frank Young, emergency management director in Warren County, Ohio.

"It looks like we caught a break," Young said.

However, rescue workers were busy helping people out of cars swamped by the flooding.

"The biggest problem has been people driving into floodwater," Young said. "There are a lot of stupid people. When that sign says, 'Road closed, high water,' that's what it means."

In Whitewater Township, firefighters went through a trailer park door to door to help residents get out if they wanted to. Crews spent several hours using boats to bring people to dry land.

Judy Booth, who's lived in a low-lying area of Whitewater Township for 11 years, said Wednesday was the first time she's had to flee from flooding.

"You don't have no choice, you've got to go," said Booth, who was helped by fire-rescue squads who brought an inflatable boat for her to her water-surrounded home.

Disaster Declaration In Missouri

President George W. Bush approved a major disaster declaration for parts of Missouri hit by flooding following days of heavy rain. The move means 70 of the state's 114 counties and the city of St. Louis are now eligible for federal emergency relief funding. The cleanup bill for the soggy mess is expected to run into the millions.

A National Weather Service official in Washington said people should be on high alert for high water and never try to drive on flooded roadways.