Midwest Floods: Waters Breach Berm at Fort Calhoun Nuclear Station in Nebraska

Midwest Floods: WatersBreach Berm at FortCalhoun Nuclear Station inNebraska Waters inMinot, ND,Nearly 13feet AboveFlood StageandExpectedto Stay NearThat Levelfor DaysA berm at a nuclear power plant in FortCalhoun, Neb., collapsed early thismorning, allowing Missouri River floodwaters to reach containment buildings andtransformers and forcing the shutdown ofelectrical power.Tonight, backup generators are cooling thenuclear material at the Fort CalhounNuclear Station.The plant has not operated since April, andofficials say there is no danger to thepublic.A spokesman for the Omaha Public PowerDistrict, Jeff Hanson, told The AssociatedPress that the breached berm wasn'tcritical to protecting the plant, though acrew will look at whether it can be patched."That was an additional layer of protectionwe put in," Hanson said.Nevertheless, federal inspectors are on thescene, and the federal government is soconcerned the head of the NuclearRegulatory Commission is headed to theplant.There was no protecting thousands ofhomes in Minot, N.D., where massiveflooding of the Souris River hit its peaktoday, flooding more than 4,000 homes,including Leslie Dull's."When you actually see your house," Dullsaid, "and you know it's not just yourbasement, it's your whole house, it's--"I'm sorry," she said, as she broke downcrying.There is some good news: The river inMinot, N.D., peaked two feet lower thanexpected. However, it is nearly 13 feetabove flood stage and it is expected to staynear that level for days."It could be two to four to six weeks, ormore, before the water actually goes backinto it's banks ... [and] before [residents]get to come and see their houses," Brig.Gen. Bill Seekins of the North DakotaNational Guard told ABC News during atour through the flooded areas.Seekins described the scene as "almostapocalyptic."Sgt. Dave Dodds of the North DakotaNational Guard said heavy rains onSaturday will keep the river at its historiccrest for longer than expected."Authorities were hoping for maybe a dayor two before it started to recede, but youcan add maybe an additional 24 hoursonto that," Dodds said.Minot Mayor Curt Zimbelman said thedevastation may be even greater thanexpected."I think we're going to reach probably4,500 [homes] before this is all done,where we've got a lot of water on thesehomes," Zimbelman said.Randy Nelson and his wife just bought acamper, knowing their house is flooded.They currently are living in a shoppingcenter parking lot, powerless to do anythingbut wait.He said the hardest part is "patience ... notknowing where you are going to live. It'stough."But there have been victories. ABC Newswatched Koni Aho race to build a bermaround her restaurant down river fromMinot. Twenty-four hours later there wasstill no water in the restaurant."I was bound and determined," she said. "Idon't care. I said, 'It's just dirt. We canmove it.'"Forecasters said scattered storms were intoday's forecast, but the worst part of thestorm will likely to be south and east of theSouris River Basin.Neighbors Helping NeighborsOfficials were building and re-enforcinglevees in the towns of Sawyer and Velvenauin fear that all the water that has beencoming through Minot will swamp the twotowns.As residents and officials brace for theworst, acts of generosity were seenthroughout the community.Garages were turned into storage units forflood victims and families and churchesopened their doors to other displacedcommunity members."For the rest of the country, that is kind ofmind-boggling. But ... that's how we are inNorth Dakota," Sen. John Hoeven told theAssociated Press.Evangelical Lutheran pastor Mike Johnsonsaid he was too preoccupied with helpingother people that he wasn't sure thecondition of his belongings after beingevacuated from the flood zone the previousweek.But Lutherans in a neighboring townstepped in and took care of his files andequipment in his office."They just showed up on Tuesday andcarted stuff off for us," Johnson told theAssociated Press.ABC News' Gerard McNiff and theAssociated Press contributed to this report. Midwest Floods: WatersBreach Berm at FortCalhoun Nuclear Station inNebraska