ATKINS, Ark — Farmers in Atkins are growing increasingly concerned as waters rise on the Arkansas River levee.
To say Dow Dollar is concerned about floodwaters is an understatement. His farm in Atkins sits just over the Arkansas River levee.
"Way past very concerned,” Dollar said. “If that levee blows out, all of this goes completely underwater.”
Water on the levee is seven feet deep. Parts of farmland are already underwater. Dollar says crews are patrolling the levee to find weak spots. He said one small hole in the levee is enough to break it.
"We have two feet of play before the water goes over the levee,” Dollar said.
Ashley Ennis works for Ralston Family Farms just down the road. She said the entire community has worked to prepare for the worst.
"Right now we're just holding strong and that the levee doesn't break,” she said. "We've worked on the levee and we've sandbagged, and evacuated cattle and equipment."
Dollar said this is the most anxious he's ever been.
"In 2015 we had a flood that was bad here. This flood water will be three feet deeper,” he said.
Because if the water gets any higher, it means trouble for the entire farming community in Atkins.
“This is what we do for a living. This land matters to us, we're on it every day. If the levee doesn't hold then we're all in trouble,” Ennis said.