BATON ROUGE – Low-water stages in major tributaries and dought-hardened ground may restrain the height of flood water in Louisiana.

Gov. Bobby Jindal jas said Monday that the Army Corps of Engineers lowered its projections for the Mississippi River.

Jindal said months of drought lowered water levels in the Ouachita and Red rivers, so less backwater flooding is expected in parishes drained by those streams.

Drought also increased the soil's capacity to absorb water, slowing the movement of diverted river water that began surging through the Morganza spillway over the weekend.

Col. Ed Fleming said that the corps also has revised downward river crest estimates due to the spillway opening. The Bonnet Carre spillway near New Orleans also is operating.

Jindal said the corps expects to open fewer gates at Morganza, near Baton Rouge, than previously expected to divert water into the Atchafalaya River.