Louisiana officials say a controlled release of water has begun, reducing the threat at an endangered dam at a southwest Mississippi state park.
Christina Stephens, a spokeswoman for the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, says Louisiana received notice of the start shortly before 2:30 p.m.
A lake swollen by rain from Tropical Storm Isaac was threatening to break the 2,300-foot-long earthen dam at Percy Quin State Park.
Mississippi's Department of Environmental Quality says it probably will dig out part of the bank of Lake Tangipahoa to allow the release of water into the river. They say they won't breach the dam itself.
After flying over Tangipahoa Parish, Gov. Bobby Jindal and Parish President Gordon Burgess ordered immediate evacuation of Kentwood, a town of 2,200.
