IOWA CITY (AFP) -- Flood ravaged Iowans were to begin the first stages of recovery under sunny skies Monday but officials warned it could be two weeks before river levels returned to normal and the damage will be in the billions.

""While this is a trying time for our state, every Iowan should know this: together, we will rebuild,"" Governor Chet Culver said.
""The waters will recede. Our citizens will rebuild and return to their homes. And Iowans will meet this challenge with optimism and resilience.""
More than 11 million people in nine midwestern states have been affected by the flooding and extreme weather of recent weeks, the Federal Emergency Management Agency said.
Iowa was by the far the hardest hit: 83 of its 99 counties have been declared disaster areas and more than 4.8 million sandbags were laid down to try to stem the tide.
The body of a man who apparently tried to swim out to his parent's house was recovered Sunday, officials said, bringing the Iowa death toll since extreme weather began on May 25 to 17.
Many downriver towns were still bracing for the worst.
""We've still got flood crests to go through, all the way through Wednesday morning,"" Iowa Department of Emergency Management spokesman John Benson told AFP.
Residents of hardest-hit Cedar Rapids - where 1,300 streets were submerged and 24,000 of the city's 124,000 residents were evacuated - were allowed briefly back to some homes, but only under escort.
Television crews allowed into the downtown area came back with images of massive pieces of debris littering the streets, smashed store windows, warped furniture and sidewalks streaked with mud and sand.