it's going to be the way they get out of the water's way. they're erecting right now a stone kind of levee very quickly to try to prevent that from happening. in essence, it's going to be a watery alamo. they have to hold it here. if they don't they'll be in serious trouble. that power plant would be in trouble as well, anderson. >> why west alton in particular so affected? >> reporter: two very big reasons. 2 1/2 miles just off in this direction is the missouri river. a mile and a half in that direction is the mississippi river. and both of those rivers right now are struggling to try to contain an awful lot of storm surge that has been coming from the heavy weather that's essentially been up north. right now the mississippi river is seeing levels it hasn't seen in close to two decades. for the most part the flood protection system has been working. but right here even though the water's starting to recede that system is showing the wear and tear. and quite frankly, right here on