record 29.3 feet. floodwaters pouring into businesses in peoria. as abc's wendy gillette reports, the flood threat covers a wide area. [ sirens blaring ] >> reporter: sandbags to the rescue in fargo, north dakota. and the tiny community of dutchtown, missouri, population 94. all to save homes and businesses from ravaging floodwaters. flowing across parts of the midwest. you couldn't ask for a more appropriate name than grand rapids, michigan, these past few days. >> never seen anything like this before in my life. and just was intrigued at how high the water was. and just how bad everything got flooded. >> reporter: a familiar refrain across the region. >> we lived here 50 years. we come downtown to walk a lot -- at least a couple times every week. and never have seen anything like this. >> reporter: the flooding is the worst in recorded history in some areas. >> came in like a water fall. >> reporter: that was before