This view is what was County Road 503 near Castor River, but it now completely submerged.

Castor River, that runs from as far north as Ste. Genevieve County, has four breaches along its bank at Hwy. Y near the Nestle Purina plant near Aquilla.

Stoddard County Sheriff Carl Hefner reports that three of the breaches were approximately 12 feet in length and the fourth approximately 25 feet across.

Corey Noles photo Members of the Bloomfield Fire Department and Stoddard County EMS work to rescue a family from the rural Aquilla home Thursday near County Roads 503 and 514. Evelyn and Michael Rhodes' home began filling with water Wednesday morning as Castor River spilled over its banks and they decided it was time to get to safety.

When the levee began to break Wednesday afternoon tall waves could be seen across the field where the river is located.

"It seems to have slowed down a lot today," Hefner said. "You can't see any more white caps and from the highway you can't see the small one from the highway with the naked eye."

Members of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are visiting Stoddard County today to assess the damage at Castor River and determine the next course of action.

Stoddard County EMS Director Dave Cooper walks Evelyn Rhodes to an ambulance to have her checked out and make sure she was ok following their rescue.

Thousands of sandbags were stacked around Circle City to ward off water Wednesday, too, but no reports of damaged homes were called in to the Stoddard County Sheriff's Department.

The following road closings are as of 9:30 a.m. Thursday morning:

* Route K from Route M to Route BB

* Route 51 from Route K to two miles north of Puxico

* Route D from Route 25 to Route 153

* Route M-entire Route

* Route 53 from Route 51 and Route UU

* Route DD from County Road 445 to 3 miles west

* Route 91 from Route 61 at Morley to Route P

* Route O from County Road 310 to Route P

* Route Y from Route N to the railroad tracks at Nestle Purina

On a lighter note, President George W. Bush signed off on Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt's request for federal damage assistance to 70 Missouri counties, including Stoddard. Just Wednesday morning, FEMA officials were in Stoddard County beginning the paperwork to reimburse the county and communities for the costs associated with the February ice storm.

"The current flooding conditions are causing great hardships on Missourians who are being evacuated from their homes, rescued from trapped vehicles, or are separated from their families," Gov. Blunt said. "I have directed all state resources to be available to assist in the rescue and recovery efforts in the affected areas."

Gov. Blunt noted that the U.S. Coast Guard has joined state agencies in the State Emergency Operations Center specifically working on water rescue missions in Southeast Missouri.

Blunt is requesting Disaster Declarations for both Individual Assistance and Public Assistance for the following 70 counties and the City of St. Louis: Audrain, Barry, Barton, Boone, Bollinger, Butler, Callaway, Camden, Cape Girardeau, Carter, Cedar, Christian, Cole, Cooper, Crawford, Dade, Dallas, Dent, Douglas, Dunklin, Franklin, Gasconade, Greene, Hickory, Howard, Howell, Iron, Jasper, Jefferson, Laclede, Lawrence, Lincoln, Madison, Maries, McDonald, Miller, Mississippi, Montgomery, Moniteau, Morgan, New Madrid, Newton, Oregon, Osage, Ozark, Pemiscot, Perry, Phelps, Pike, Polk, Pulaski, Reynolds, Ripley, St. Charles, St. Clair, St. Francois, St. Louis, Ste Genevieve, Shannon, Scott, Stoddard, Stone, Taney, Texas, Vernon, Warren, Washington, Wayne, Webster, and Wright Counties. As damage information continues to become available, he may request additional counties.

The State Emergency Operations Center (SEOC) is coordinating state resources assisting local governments with their emergency protection actions ranging from water rescues, mass care and sheltering operations, monitoring road closures, security and transportation missions, drinking water, sanitary sewage, energy supplies, debris, and status of regulated dams, coordinating health and safety visits for long-term care facilities and other vulnerable populations, and contacting long-term care providers in the affected areas to determine needs for back-up power or other critical needs.

Preliminary Damage Assessments will be requested as soon as flood waters recede enough to allow access to damaged areas.

FEMA said Thursday morning that damage surveys have been scheduled and more counties and additional forms of assistance may be designated after the assessments are completed.