Reporter arrested while covering Des Moines flood

A reporter covering the flood in Des Moines was arrested Saturday morning on charges of trespassing and interference with official acts.

Todd E. Erzen, a six-year veteran of The Des Moines Register, was working at the scene of a levee breach when he was arrested — which he was also charged with resisting. "We are still trying to understand precisely what happened," Carolyn Washburn, editor and vice president of the paper, said, "and won’t comment on the situation at this point." 

Erzen, 35, co-wrote a story with two other reporters that ran in Sunday’s edition of the paper on an "outdated" levee that was "a known weak spot" when it burst Saturday, prompting the evacuation of several neighborhoods.